Senior Year
by Zoe Marie888
Summary: The final year of High School is about to get interesting.  Told from Peyton's POV.
1. Chapter 1

A/N – So this is technically my first proper attempt at fanfic, but I wanted to get a few chapters into it before posting so that I could go back and adjust the story as necessary. I think most of it is self-explanatory, with the beginning bit built on one of my memories (before being adapted slightly) before looping back into Tree Hill World. I think it flows quite nicely, but any questions or comments please feel free to review.

I do not own OTH or any of the characters.

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><p>Sliding further back on the bed, I grab my bottle of luminous coloured drink from the nightstand and draining half the contents in one gulp, whilst flipping a CD case onto one of the numerous piles surrounding me. In the distance, two flights of stairs down, an upbeat dance song is blasting out of the stereo, and I know that half cut people will be dancing along to the repetitive beat, even though it is giving me a headache. '<em>Which is exactly the reason that I had volunteered to find some new music, something with a bit more substance,<em>' I think as I hear a door slam downstairs, and the spiky brown hair of my ex-boyfriend Nathan Scott comes into view, up the narrow staircase into the attic room, carrying two more bottles.

From the outside it would look like we where the last people on the planet who would be having a wild party on a Friday night, whilst someone's parents where out of town, considering half of us where honour students gearing up for the finals of our senior year. But this was precisely the reason why we needed to blow off some steam, and it wasn't like we where going to trash the house or anything. We are responsible teenagers, and we had been having house parties since the start of the year, and so far, nothing _expensive_ had been broken. It was only the second week after the Christmas break, and already the cracks where beginning to show throughout the entire student body or at least the half of the student body that actually cared about grades. It wouldn't be too long until someone really cracks under the pressure, and I hoped to God that it wouldn't be me that makes an arse out of myself in front of a classroom full of people.

I re-arrange my legs so that I'm more comfortable on the bed, before flipping the final CD case onto the third pile, just as Nathan pops open the bottle and hands it over to me. He's wearing jeans, a polo shirt and his varsity jacket, but even though he is part of the basketball team at school he is much more comfortable hanging out with us, as opposed to the jocks. I mean, don't get me wrong, he is friends with the _most_ of the team, and somehow he manages to bridge the gap between us and them, but he manages not to see labels and is friends with everyone, just like in kindergarten before cliques formed.

We have been friends since his first day of pre-school, and we tried dating at the end of our junior year, just to see if it would work, but I knew from the first moment that it wasn't going to be out destiny. His father put him under too much pressure to perform on the basketball court, and even if the team won, it just wasn't good enough for Dan Scott. Because of this Nathan put up a wall between him and the rest of the world, choosing to deal with the pressure alone, and sometimes even I can't find the words to get through to him. Hosting this party at his father's beach house was just one of the ways he blew off some steam, and he really doesn't care if anything get broken, using the excuse that his father was rich enough to cover the damage.

"Hey Peyton, how's it going up here?" Nathan asks, staring at the various piles scattered all over his bed with amusement, and watching as I pick up one of the piles to hand over to him.

"Er, this stack is crap," I tell him, as he accepts the cases and slides them onto his desk, before taking the second pile from me, "And these don't have CDs in them, but this pile will do." I gesture to the smallest pile resting against my knee, as he takes a seat next to me on the bed, and we both lean against the wall looking up through the diagonal window that is set into the roof, to look at the stars.

I sigh, enjoying the moment of silence between us, whilst making shapes out of the stars, and I see Nathan move next to me in my peripheral vision to look at me with his eyebrows raised, wondering what I am thinking.

"Don't look at me like that," I laugh, twisting around to face him, and his dark brown eyes scan my face. "It's just that we are never going to be here again all together. This time next year we will have graduated and be in college or working, and it just won't be the same. It's just nice to have a moment to relax and appreciate it."

"Considering we are never going to be here again; maybe we should make it mean something too," he smiles seductively, dropping his gaze down to my lips, and I feel my stomach tie itself into knots. Somewhere in the distance I am vaguely aware of the door slamming again, and laughing voices coming closer, but I am unable to move. My body has stopped responding, and all I can see is Nathan reaching forwards to place his hand on my shoulder, whilst my mind is screaming at me to stop this from happening again.

"What the hell?" someone in the room yells, breaking into my trance, just before Nathan's lips touch mine. I jump back in shock, and someone is pulling me up from the bed away from Nathan and I hop unsteadily on my heel, trying to find my balance. Without looking I know the person that has pulled me away is Jake, now is currently wrapping his arms around my waist to pull me back against his chest protectively.

What the hell are you thinking?" Jake asks again, and I notice Nathan is looking particularly angry for being interrupted. "You stay the hell away from her! Peyton is mine." Jake throws over my shoulder, and I cringe at the final statement. For the first time I notice someone else in the room, a petite brunette called Haley, who was a friend of Jake's who occasionally hangs out with us. She was at first throwing daggers my way and I could almost feel the jealousy rolling off her as she looked between me and Nathan. Her scrutiny made me automatically pull my skirt down as far as it would go, but at the last statement she raised her eyebrows, noting the way Jake's arms are still around my waist, knowing that this was about to get interesting.

The history between myself and Jake, was at best could be called complicated. After me and Nathan had broken up he was my shoulder to lean on. I mean it wasn't like I was heartbroken over ending the relationship, but Jake didn't even let me consider wallowing in my PJs eating ice cream. He dragged me out of the house, sometimes kicking and screaming, to make me experience the world, taking me to music gigs and making me laugh. After a few weeks, whenever he knocked on the door, my stomach would flip and I knew that I was slowly falling for him, so when he drove me home that night I threw caution out of the window and kissed him. Thinking back, I knew I felt him hesitate before kissing me back, but I pushed it to the back of my mind whilst running my hands over his broad shoulders and tangling my fingers in his thick brown hair. After a moment or two he pulled back suddenly, breaking out of my grip, and looking out of the window at anything other than me. Feeling confused, and very embarrassed, I fumbled for the door handle, trying desperately to get out of the car and into my house, when I felt his fingers catch my wrist gently, making me turn to look at him. He opened his mouth to say something, with his grey eyes filled with tears, "Peyton, I have to tell you something…"


	2. Chapter 2

A/N – so apparently I confused people with Chapter One, so I dicided to up-date earlier than planned so that I can try to explain.

This is not technically set in season three of OTH, it is a completely different senior year, but some of the events further down the line may be the same as certain episodes. This is a Leyton fic, and he turns up right at the end of this chapter (The party was wrote as one complete set, but I had to cut it down into a couple of chapters, so that the tension is increased and it keeps you coming back for more. Plus I can write for England when my muse is working, which makes chapters huge).

Peyton and Nathan are just friends now (Nathan was drunkenly hitting on her. I'm sure we have all been there), and Haley likes Nathan (but they are not married, and for this fic I'm not really planning on them getting married). Jeyton fans please don't hate me for the following chapter, but as I explained this is part of my high school memories, so it has to happen.

For the people that didn't understand where Jake and Haley appeared from, they where the door slamming in the distance that Peyton didn't really pay attention to as Nathan was really close to her and she was very drunk.

One again I do not own the characters or OTH, and if you have any questions please review and I will answer in the next up-date x

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><p>"Don't be stupid," Nathan slurred, fixing his gaze onto Jake and raising his voice ten decibels. "She couldn't possibly be yours; main reason being is that you are gay!"<p>

I feel my jaw drop open with shock, not because Nathan knew, I mean by now that fact was public knowledge, but because Nathan would throw it into Jake's face, knowing how hard that past few months had been for him. Tearing myself out of Jake's grasp and feeling like I had left my heart in his hands again, I had to get out of this room, and away from both of them. I wasn't their property, and I sure as hell wasn't going to stand there as they staked their claim over me. Hopping across the room, I grab my crutches before heading towards the stairs, away from the boys and away from Haley's judging eyes.

I let the door slam at the bottom of the stairs, and I could feel everyone's eyes on me, but instead I see an opening between the mass of bodies, and I dive through it, making my way down the second flight of stairs as fast as I can manoeuvre my crutches, and I pray silently that I haven't hit anyone with the hard pieces of metal. On the ground floor the dance music is much louder, and through the open doors to the living room and kitchen all that can be seen in the shadows is swaying bodies and various bottles of beer flashing in the lights.

To the right of me someone opens the front door, walking into the house and a rush of cool air brushes over my exposed legs as they glide past, and in that instant I see my escape. Resting all of my weight on my crutches and injured leg, I slowly stretch my other leg over the threshold and down to the next step. One step down, one to go, but the cool air was making the alcohol in my bloodstream to travel up to my brain, and halfway through stretching down to the second step, someone thought it was a good idea to scream my name over the music, from somewhere inside the house. Putting a name automatically to the voice, the panic quickly overcomes me again, causing my crutches to slide out from under my arms, and I half fall down the final step, right into someone's un-expecting arms.

"Shit," I hear the guy swear, as he re-arranges his feet to support my weight, and I feel his hands instinctively wrap around my body, holding me close to his chest whilst I position my crutches back in the right place. For a split second, whilst my head is buried against his chest a feeling of safety passes through me, and his unique guy smell fills my lungs, and my heart rate doubles. Shuffling backwards slightly, I stare at the floor, embarrassed, not wanting to look my surprised saviour.

"Peyton!" I hear the voice shout again from behind me, and I quickly dart around the guy, clicking quickly down the side of the house and making my way down the drive.

"Hey," the guy says gently to Jake who was trying to follow me down the drive, and the voice stirs up an old memory. "Why don't you let me talk to her, and she will come to find you when she is ready." He suggests, and I know without looking he has stopped Jake's progress towards me.

I reach the end of the drive, passing through the large sculptured pillars, before reaching the pavement and I sit down on the edge of the curb, not caring in the slightest if the back of my short white skirt gets dirty. Throwing my crutches off to one side, I stretch my injured leg out in front of me, hating the cast that covers my entire lower limb from knee to heel, leaving my toes exposed. I curl my other foot closer, checking the long ribbons holding my shoe on are still tight, thinking in hindsight that wearing huge heels, well heel (singular), was probably not the best footwear to mix with alcohol and crutches. Thankfully my father was not in when I left the house tonight, as I am pretty sure he would have locked me in my room instead.

I stare out across the road, wishing desperately that I was anywhere else on the planet right this second, and I keep my gaze purposefully locked on the opposite side of the road as I feel the guy slowly making his way towards me, trying not to startle me. I reach up and pull my hair out of the twist I wrapped it into earlier, allowing it to fall around my shoulders in soft blonde waves to keep me slightly warmer.

"Hey Peyt," he starts gently, using a nickname I haven't heard in years, and sitting down next to me, leaving just enough space between our arms so that they don't accidently brush, and setting down two bottles of soda on the curb between our hips. "So… how's your life been since the last time we spoke… twelve or so years ago?" he asks, pulling out a bottle opener on his keys to pry the lid off the first bottle before handing it to me.

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><p>AN – Once again, Jake fans please do not hate me, but I needed someone to be protective over Peyton without wanting anything more. My high school year consisted of my best guy friend coming out and it totally twisted my world, which is where the inspiration for the beginning of this story came from.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N – so this is the first interaction between Lucas and Peyton (since the last twelve years) and it has a bit of history thrown in, which hopefully answers any questions you have been having.

As always, I do not own OTH or any of the characters, and I really appreciate all of the people who take their time to review, as it helps with my inspiration x

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><p>I pull my gaze away from across the street to meet the deep blue eyes of Nathan's half brother Lucas Scott, seeing that he was asking a serious question whilst also trying to lighten the mood. I accept the bottle, making sure my skin did not touch his again, draining half the bottle before replying. "In general, not too bad… I mean, as good as it could be considering… but in the past five minutes, a complete and utter nightmare."<p>

"Yeah, I kind of heard through the open window… and put two and two together when you fell out of the house. I thought Jake was…"

"Yeah, he is, hence the nightmare" I cut him off, looking away, not wanting to relive it, and I am grateful when he decides not to press the subject further. "So how's your life, Mr. Big Time Basketball Star?"

I see the blush that rises in his cheeks for a moment, and he looks uncomfortable having the attention on him, before he replies, and it hits me that his reactions are nothing like Nathan's, or Dan's, for that matter. "Yeah, it's not too bad considering. I'm just trying to get through these final few months, so I can get out of this town and leave my history behind me."

I glance back over to him, and I remember in that instant what happened that split us apart. In the first grade, back when boys were supposed to have cooties, we had been forced to sit next to each other, thanks to the joys of the alphabet. But after a few days of ignoring each other, an un-expected friendship had formed when he randomly gave me one of his chocolate chip cookies during lunch, without any explanation. It was broken, however when Dan Scott moved his new wife to Tree Hill, and Nathan ended up in the same class. Our first grade teacher, who thinking back must have known the history between the two boys, considering the legend that is Dan Scott for this town, ironically chose me out of the whole class to show the new boy around. Things quickly split between me and Lucas, especially when Nathan started bragging that there was a new Scott in town, one that had his father's love and money. I saw through what Nathan was trying to do, knowing he was feeling exposed and scared, and I had yelled at him for it afterwards, but the damage was done, and Lucas broke away from the our little group, instead concentrating on basketball and books.

Years later, the attraction of Lucas Scott spread like wildfire around the girls at school that where all hormonally charged. The quiet broody blonde with the incredible jump shot became the target of almost every girl, especially when he made the varsity team in his freshmen year.

"So…" he broke the silence after a few minutes, looking down to my leg, "How did that happen?"

I blush, embarrassed. "Er, it was stupid really. Brooke had me practicing some new cheerleading move with her, and I twisted funny, breaking my leg when I hit my bedroom floor." I laugh, remembering Brooke's face as I convinced her that I needed to go to the hospital, whilst she was still dancing, adjusting the new routine. "At least I have an excuse to be late for class now."

Lucas laughs in response; his blue eyes taking on a new fire that I haven't seen in forever. "I still can't believe you are a cheerleader," he replies. "But you should have heard some of the rumours flying around school when you turned back up with that on your leg."

"Yeah, well Brooke can be pretty persuasive when she puts her mind to it," I respond, remembering how much she whined until I tried out for her, and how I bargained that I never had to even pretend that I had school spirit. Dance routines I could cope with, pretending to be part of the pep club is where I draw the line. "I can't believe people were talking about me though," I cringe at the though, and he notices my reaction.

"Oh come on, you have to know that people talk about you," he teases. "You're a complete mystery to anyone outside your little group; I mean who knew you are a drinking on a Friday night type. Although I wish you would have given it a miss tonight." He smiles, raking his eyes down my long legs, taking in the cast and the huge shoe.

"Oh hindsight is so useful," I smile sarcastically, taking another gulp from the bottle, before resting it back on the floor between us.

"You look like you breeze through high school which is pretty intimidating to anyone on the outside." He continues his blue eyes locked on my face, watching my reactions. "Plus the looks some boys give you is damn right unnerving, but you don't even notice them. You're so independent it's scary."

"Oh please, they don't even know me. _You_ don't even know me," I reply, continuing when I see him raise his eyebrows at me, and I get the feeling that might not be as true as I think it is. "I'm not the same girl that you knew in first grade… too much as happened since then. I have more issues than Rolling Stones, and you only heard the most recent one earlier." I take a deep breath, wrapping my arms around myself and look away from him, "Speaking of, I do not want to go back in there."

"That's alright. How about I take you home?" Lucas asks, pulling off his denim jacket and handing it to me, before standing up.

"I'm supposed to be staying here tonight," I sigh, accepting the jacket hesitantly. "My house keys and bag are still inside."

"I'll go get them," he smiles, picking up the two empty bottles, before loping off towards the house and disappearing into the crowd. I sit there for a moment, wondering what the hell just happened, before sighing and pushing my hands through the sleeves of his jacket. It was still warm from his body, and his unique smell was woven into the fabric. I pull my hands free from the long sleeves to release my trapped hair, allowing it to fall naturally around my shoulders, as I reach over to grab my crutches just as he reappears.

"Hey, I've told Brooke that I'm taking you home, and she said to text her tomorrow. This is yours too, right?" he asks as he gets closer, showing me my leather jacket that I had forgotten completely about, as I was usually wearing it, and he had my bag slung across his shoulder.

"Oh, shit, yeah." I reply, ready to give up his jacket for my own, but instead watch as he folds it gently over his arm, before reaching out to help me to my feet. "Thank god you found it. I don't know what I would do if I lost it," I tail off as I reach out to take his hand, pulling my one good foot underneath me and positioning the crutches under my arms, trying desperately to ignore the fact my heart rate kicked up a notch again when my skin touched his.

"Did you adjust the length of those things before you came out tonight to accommodate your shoe?" he asked, breaking the tension with his eyebrows raised as he pointed to the crutches, and I nod sheepishly; watching as he rolled his eyes at me. "Come on, let's get you home."

"My dad is so going to kill me when I rock up drunk and wearing this," I confess, concentrating on placing my crutches carefully, as we walked over to his car. "It's is definitely the last time I go shopping with Brooke."

Lucas slowly trailed his eyes up my body, looking at the short skirt with his eyebrows raised, pausing for a moment before replying. "Yeah, it's not quite your style," he smirked, causing a blush to creep its way up my cheeks. I was just glad it was dark to that he wouldn't be able to see. I let him open the passenger door, waiting for me to slide into the car before handing me my bag and jacket. Closing the door gently, Lucas walked around the front to get into the driver's seat, and I discreetly pile all my belongings on the seat in between us, making the space between our bodies as large as possible. My heart was already a mess without having to deal with it accelerating every ten seconds when he moves to change gear.

Lucas sets of in the right direction of my house without any comments from me. I rest my head against the cool glass looking out of the window, watching the street lights of Tree Hill flash past. Turning the corner onto my street, I see my car, a '63 black convertible Mercury Comet sitting in the drive, which I haven't been able to drive for a few weeks because of my cast. But it wasn't that image that had me panicking. Stood in the open doorway, silhouetted by the hallway lights and looking out across the street, was my father.

"Shit," I whisper, sliding down in the seat and hiding behind Lucas form, and he glances in my direction questioning. "Keep on driving," I instruct him before he starts to slow down at the curb, and I start laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. "And stop looking at me," I manage to get out in between the waves of laughter, and I see his eyebrows raise in response and his lips curve upwards into a genuine smile.


	4. Chapter 4

"Okay, so if you don't want to go home just yet," Lucas begins, as we turn the corner at the far end of the street and slowly drives away from my house, "How about we go to mine, just until you sober up?" he asks, glancing in my direction for a split second, and automatically pulling up next to the curb in front of his house.

"What about your mom?" I question, straightening up again and turning to face him. "Won't she mind if I walk in drunk?"

"Er, no," Lucas responds hesitantly, and I stare at him for a moment before he cracks into a smile. "Well there is only one way to find out." He tails off, getting out of the car, and walking around to help me out, but I quickly decide I can do it myself, and pull myself to my feet before he can reach me. Instead he course corrects himself automatically, walking up the porch steps and opening the front door.

I follow nervously, having not stepped foot in his house since I was four years old, which is strange because around that time I regarded this house as a second home and walked in without knocking. Clicking across the wooden floor, Lucas gestured in the general direction of the sofa before disappearing down the long hallway to the kitchen.

"Hey mom?" I hear him call out as I hear him open the fridge, and his footsteps come back in my direction.

"Lucas?" I hear a muffled reply coming from behind one of the closed doors, which clicks open just as Lucas hands me a bottle of water and takes my crutches off me once I'd sat down. "Oh…" I heard Karen falter when she noticed me sat here, but she recovered quickly. "Hey Peyton, it's good to see you again" she smiles genuinely at me, making it sound like she hadn't seen me for a few days, not twelve years, before turning her attention to Lucas. "Lucas, can you take your ironing into your room?" She hands him the pile of clothes that where in her arms and he rolls his eyes before disappearing back down the hallway. "And don't just dump it somewhere," she shouts at his disappearing back, causing me to laugh. With my dad away most of the time with his job I miss having these kinds of interactions, something that made a house feel like a home.

I unscrew the top off the bottle of water, watching the conversation between Lucas and his mom, noticing how protective he was of her without saying a word. It was just present in his posture. Karen turns back to me, running her hands through her short wavy hair and securing it back with a band, letting a few unruly curls escape and frame her face. I smile, knowing that my hair usually behaves in the same way when I let it dry naturally, although tonight Brooke had gone all out and insisted that I let her dry it into gentle waves.

"So Peyton," she smiles at me again, studying me for a split second. "Are you hungry?" I nod my head politely, and she disappeared in the same direction as Lucas, returning a moment later with a plate filled with homemade chocolate chip cookies, which she hands to me with a wink before disappearing again. Karen owns a small café in the centre of town and her food is amazing. I could hear in the distance the sink being run and dishes clunking together. In that instant I realized that she knew that I am both drunk, and about Lucas giving me his cookie when we first became friends. It surprises me how easily we have fallen back into the familiar routine of friends.

Lucas reappears in that moment, and I hide my shock by taking a gulp of the water and concentrate on sobering myself up.

"What did you do to deserve the good cookies?" he questions, teasingly as he snags a handful from the plate and sits down on the sofa next to me, and I raise my eyebrows at him. "She usually saves the homemade stuff for the customers and I get the broken bits." He laughs.

"I'm just that awesome," I reply sarcastically, flicking my hair over my shoulder with a laugh and accept the cookie his is offering, whilst scrunching my bare toes against the soft carpet. I notice after a moment that he is looking at me questioningly whilst chewing his second cookie. "My toes are really itchy," I explain, looking down past the cast. "Apparently it's part of the healing process, but I can't reach them because I can't bend my knee."

"Here, let me help," Lucas offers, handing me his last cookie without thinking about it, before sliding his hand carefully under my knees and twisting me so that my legs were across his lap.

"Luke, no," I protest, accidently using his nickname and he pauses for a moment to look at me, locking his blue eyes with my own green ones. With his hand on the bare skin of my knee, and his face so close to my own, I could feel my heart rate accelerate and my gaze unconsciously drops down to his lips.

"Hey Lucas!" A voice interrupts, breaking the moment, "I've just heard about this killer party down at one of the beach houses… What the hell?" A skinny redhead strides into the room, wearing skin-tight jeans and a slinky top. She took one look at me and my close proximity to Lucas, and I instantly know that if looks could kill then I would be dead twice over. Suddenly I'm feeling very sober, and I slowly shift my legs away from him, looking around wildly for my crutches so I can get the hell out.

The redhead in question is Rachel, one of the most popular girls in school, and for lack of a better word, a complete bitch. She had made it perfectly clear since she transferred in just before Christmas that she had set her sights on Lucas and no-one would get in her way. Much to Brooke's disgust she had managed to squeeze her way onto the cheerleading squad, and had made it perfectly clear from day one that she hated everything about me, from my band t-shirts right down to my Converse trainers.

"Er, hey Rachel," Lucas cuts through the silence, glancing between me and the redhead, who was now looking at me with her eyebrows raised, and I could almost see her brain scheming away on how to defend her 'territory'.

"I'm going to go…" I tail off, grabbing my crutches and bag before making a swift exit, clicking down the sidewalk before turning the corner onto my street. In the distance I hear a door slam, followed quickly by the screeching of tires against concrete.

Unlocking my front door, it had taken me a minute to locate the right key considering I didn't usually keep it locked, I let it slam closed behind me and my dad appeared from the living room, taking in my wild hair and flushed cheeks.

"Hey baby girl," he smiled, wedging a bookmark between the pages of whatever he was reading. "I didn't think you would be home tonight."

"Er, yeah change of plans," I mumble, making my way to the stairs. "I need to use the bathroom," I tag on as an explanation as I start to manoeuvre my way up the stairs carefully. It's only when I'm safely in my room, resting my head against the black painted wooden door that I realize I'm still wearing Lucas' jacket.

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><p>AN – So we finally got to the end of the night. Please review if you have any comments x


	5. Chapter 5

I stride into school Monday morning with Brooke by my side, on the last minute as usual, which for once is not my fault. Brooke had been messing around trying to find the perfect shade of lip gloss to match her nail varnish. She is currently walking without looking, as all her concentration was on the small compact mirror in her palm as she perfectly applied yet another coat, before offering it to me.

I look at her for a moment, wondering if she is serious, before I roll my eyes at her. I have gone the extra mile this morning, at her request, using a small amount of eyeliner in addition to my usual mascara and lip balm combination, which increased the colour of my green eyes. Plus it wasn't like I had a free hand to even consider taking the small tube from her. I was already girly enough, stuck wearing skirts until my cast came off; therefore I was definitely drawing the line at sparkly, pink lip gloss.

We head in the general direction of our lockers, seeing the usual group of friends hanging around the same spot waiting for us before the bell rang. On seeing us approach, they glance in our direction, before quickly diverting their attention elsewhere looking uncomfortable. I look over to Brooke, who either hadn't noticed, or was doing an excellent job of ignoring them, but the tension is visible in her body language.

"Brooke?" I question, pulling her to one side and pausing when a group of popular girls passed by, taking one look at me and snickering. "What is going on?"

"Er…" Brooke faltered, glancing anywhere but at me before sighing. "Apparently there is a rumour that you slept with both Nathan and Jake on Friday night one after the other, and then afterwards Jake announced that he was definitely gay because of it." She pauses for a second to push her long brown hair over her shoulder, and I know that my jaw has dropped open but I can't seem to correct it. "It hit the internet early Saturday morning, and I think most of the school has heard about it."

"Who the hell started it?" I ask when I am able to form a proper sentence. I can't believe she has known about this for two whole days and not said a word to me.

"I'm not entirely sure," Brooke replies, her deep chocolate eyes looking over me and judging my reaction. "But it's not true, so you should just ignore it," she adds on, taking my arm and pulling me down the corridor.

I pull my locker open, sliding the necessary books into my bag, and glancing at my timetable stuck to the back of the door, trying desperately to ignore the whispers surrounding me but several different versions of events manage still managed to meet my ears. Without looking I know that Jake was stood behind me, and I wasn't in the mood to deal with his explanation of his behaviour on Friday night, or if he knows how the rumour got started.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" he questions over my shoulder, leaning against the next locker and touching my shoulder gently.

I flinch under his touch, turning around. "No," I respond simply, slamming my locker closed and unintentionally making half the hallway jump. "I have nothing to say to you."

"Come on," he pleaded, trying to stop me walking away. "Don't make this any harder for me than it is already."

"You think this is hard for you?" I question in disbelief. "Try being me. You know exactly who you are, and I'm on the outside of the circle, the last to know, and waiting to be let in on the joke, where apparently I'm the punch line!" I know I'm getting louder, but he had to know that he can't keep playing with my heart. I'm vaguely aware that the corridor has fallen silent to listen to our exchange. Over his shoulder I see a group of popular girls whispering something between themselves, laughing in my general direction, and for a split second I catch Lucas' eye. Rachel has draped herself around his neck, whilst obviously talking about me.

"That's 'morning after the night before' tension right there," I hear her stage whisper, loud enough for the entire hallway to hear, and I hear the popular girls snicker in response to her lame joke.

I shake my head, turning on my heel with a flurry of blonde hair, and clomping down the hall, pausing only to sling my bag further onto my back, just as the bell rings and classroom doors open to welcome students.

Bolting around the corner, just as I heard my name being called by both Brooke and the teacher of my first class, I block it all out, heading in the direction of the offices. Clicking past the head office, I bang on the door of Coach 'Whitey' Durham, hoping desperately that he was in. I pause for a second, waiting to hear movement on the other side of the closed door, but just silence greets me; I quickly cross the corridor diagonally, approaching the office window.

The young girl behind the desk looks up, and blinks at my sudden appearance. "Hi, can you tell where Coach Durham is right now?" I question before she can even respond. "I need to speak to him immediately."

"Er, shouldn't you be in class…" she questions, tailing off lamely when she sees my expression, and quickly types something into the computer in front of me. "It says he's covering boy's football at the moment. His schedule says it should be taking place on the football field, but you know Coach Durham, he could be anywhere…"

I've set off walking before she even finishes her sentence, banging back the double doors with my good foot, and heading first to the field house. No point in trekking halfway across the school if he was teaching the football jocks something about basketball. Pulling open the first door, I cut through the empty locker room, before opening the second set of doors, taking a quick scan around the junior varsity team playing basketball, as the coach notices my presence and takes a step towards me.

"Whitey?" I question as an explanation as to why I was emerging from the boy's locker room and interrupting the lesson.

"He's on the football field," He responds as he walks closer to me. Sighing, I slam the door back on its hinges and quickly turn on my heels, backtracking through the locker room and cutting across the school grounds.

Dumping my bag at the entrance to the stands, knowing that there is no one around to even think about stealing it, and considering the weight of it, they have to be out of their minds to even think about picking it up. I step out onto the field, feeling the ends of my crutches sink into the soggy grass, thinking that people who actually enjoyed outdoor sports must be out of their minds. It was one of the more appealing aspects of cheering for the basketball team who always play indoors.

At one end of the field I could see various groups of boys jumping on top of each other, fighting for possession of the strange shaped ball, whilst the coach stood on the centre line, shouting what should have been words of encouragement, but knowing Whitey, they were probably laced with sarcasm. On seeing me some of the freshmen boys get distracted from the game, causing the rest to look in my general direction, until most of the class were staring at me, the ball apparently forgotten. I could almost imagine what I looked like to them, the harsh wind blowing my hair in every direction, causing it to stream out behind me; almost as through I was in a shampoo commercial. Brooke would be proud, but then I remember the rumour and realize that they are probably staring for a different reason.

"Peyton?" I hear my name being carried by the wind, as Whitey notices my presence, and he quickly shoos the boys back to their game, before closing the distance between us so that I didn't have to struggle through the mud anymore. "What are you doing up here?" he asks gruffly, concentrating on the boys again. "Why aren't you in class?"

"I want to go home… now." I reply, turning my back on the class and looking out across the stands. I wouldn't usually ask permission before cutting class and leaving school grounds, but with my dad at home I thought it was best to ask this time, and Whitey would be the one teacher who might actually understand.

"Why? What happened?" he questions, taking a step back so that he could look at me whilst also watching the class, and he saw the tears being to form in my eyes. He made a slight move to comfort me, but stopped himself, knowing that it would cross a line. Stepping forward, he blew on the whistle causing the boys behind me to fall silent, just as the first drop of rain hit. "We're going in, preferably before this rain hits," he shouts as an explanation, before grumbling slightly under his breath about outdoor sports. "Someone grab that damn ball, the rest of you grab the cones, and we'll go and play basketball with the JV's."

Turning around, I start back the way I came, knowing that by the time I hit concrete again they would have caught up to me. Pulling my crutches out of the final section of mud, I stop by my bag just as the boys' crowd down the tunnel.

"Daniel, you look relatively clean. Grab Peyton's bag for her would you," he shouts over the chattering boys, and a small boy with a shock of dull blonde hair bounces forwards with a small smile, as he reaches down to slide the strap of my book bag over his shoulder. He hesitates for a second before looking to me with a look of shock on his face as he feels the weight of it.

"Sorry," I whisper before saying a quick 'thanks'. Without the weight of the bag I am able to keep up with the class as they meandered across the school ground before piling into the gym. Daniel drops my bag by the first set of doors, before disappearing through the doors with the rest of the class. I pause outside waiting for Whitey to reappear.

"My office, now." He mutters when he re-opened the door, snagging my bag before I could reach down and grab it. So all I could do was follow quietly, wondering what he was going to say.

Pushing open his office door after unlocking it, he lets me walk in first, before shutting the door firmly and dropping my bag to the floor with a bang. I open my mouth to speak, but he beat me to the punch.

"What the hell…" he starts, and I fear the worst, "Are you carrying around with you in there?" he continues, and I raise my eyebrows at him. "You do realize you're on crutches, yes?"

"Yeah, one of the many joys of being an honour student" I reply, lowering my gaze to the floor, trying to stop the flood of tears. "I should have remembered that before getting pissed at the weekend as well."

He moves to sit on the edge of the desk, looking at me with a confused expression. "What has happened Peyton? And don't you dare tell me its nothing, or I will get Brooke out of class and she will tell me, or maybe I will accidently lock you and Jake in the same room until you get some of this out."

On the mention of Jake's name, I immediately burst into tears, replaying Saturday night and all the events that followed. I also know that Coach Durham knew more than he was letting on. It wasn't really Jake that I had the problem with anymore; my heart was eventually healing after his shock confession and I was trying to be a supportive friend, but since walking in this morning with a lot of rumours flying around, all of them about me, and it didn't take two guesses to know who had started them and why.

Grabbing the tissue he offered, I manage to control my tears so that my voice works without breaking. "Just give me permission to go home, or I will walk out," I threaten, pulling my crutches under me. "I'll be back tomorrow ready to fight this thing, but now, I need my alone time." I pause for a second, reading his eyes, knowing that he can't really give me permission. "Fine," I breathe, getting up and walking to the door, pulling my bag into place before opening the door.

Crossing the corridor diagonally again, I push open the main door, breathing a sigh of relief when I glance up to see the office empty, before scrawling my name on the signing out pad, writing 'hormonal' in the reason why column. I doubt that they would find me writing 'suicidal' in that column funny, even if it was only metaphorical. I push open the front door and set off walking down the drive.

Again, in hindsight, I hadn't really thought this through too much, considering I still couldn't drive, and I live about a mile away from school. Pushing past the pain in my leg, I just concentrate on the rhythm of my feet and crutches, so that I didn't have to even consider thinking about anything else.

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><p>AN – So there wasn't really a Leyton interaction, but Peyton has to do some healing over Jake before she can move on. I don't want to rush the whole 'back to being friends' either, as life is never that easy.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N – Well you should all be very happy to learn that my laptop is now fixed and it didn't wipe the memory, so all the progress I've made with this story is still here :) So this chapter is a lot about Peyton healing and dealing with the aftermath of the rumours. It's not the longest chapter, but the break came naturally, and because I'm in a good mood, I'll up-date a little quicker (maybe even tomorrow night).

As always, I do not own OTH or any of the characters, and I really appreciate everyone who takes their time to review x

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><p>Reaching the edge of town, I decide what I really need at this moment in time is a mother, daughter chat. I mean they rage on about it all the time on those after-school specials, convincing us that she has been through it all, and therefore will know exactly the right thing to say. Usually I just roll my eyes at the television, knowing that it wouldn't work for me, and even through I know for definite that my mom has never got through anything like this, I still feel the urge to talk to her.<p>

Clicking down one of the small side streets, I push open the old rusty gate, hearing it creak in protest and brush the reddish-orange dust onto the back of my skirt before continuing down the uneven flagstone path. Overhead the trees on either side of the path join together, creating a tunnel for me to pass through as they block out the sunlight so that it hits the floor in a dapple green collage.

Taking in an uneven breath I step off the path, knowing where I am heading without even looking, and watch as the damp grass curls around the toe of my trainer. I lift my other leg up higher so that my bare toes don't touch the damp blades. In the distance I see my destination. The familiar grey outline looms up from the grass, and even though I can't read them yet, in my mind I see the words that are just as carved into my memory as they are into the granite.

"Hey mom," I whisper once I'm a couple of feet away, resting my elbows onto my crutches so that I can pull my leather jacket closer around my body. "Now is there some cosmic loophole that I don't know about that you could somehow access at this moment in time, because I could really use your reply right about now." I spoke to the headstone, tracing the letters of 'Anna Sawyer' with my eyes and moving to sit cross-legged roughly six feet away in between the roots of a large tree. After a moment of silence, I sigh, knowing that I am never going to get the answer I want from her. Leaning back against the tree, I pull out my sketchpad and a pen, and I chew thoughtfully on the end, but after watching the rabbits play among the headstones in the distance for a few minutes, I put it all away again, knowing that inspiration wasn't going to come.

Exiting the cemetery from the far gates, I wander slowly up the main street in the direction of my house. The music store halfway up beckons to me but I manage to resist, knowing that I had enough records at home for the time being. Plus if I went home with a new one my dad would just assume I cut class to go shopping, which would probably raise the question as to whether or not Brooke is a good influence on me, and I didn't want her dragged into the mess.

I'm still in the middle of my on-going musing when I hear my name being called from one of the doorways that I've just passed. "Peyton?" I hear my name being called again, and I slowly turn to see Karen standing in the doorway to her café with a look of concern on her face.

"Oh hey," I manage to mumble uncomfortably, feeling that I might be getting a lecture sooner rather than later.

"Can you come inside for a moment, I need your opinion on something," she asks, before pulling the door open again and disappearing back inside, and I have no choice but to follow her.

Crossing the threshold, I see Karen busy working in the kitchen, so I take a seat at the counter on one of the tall stools, hooking my crutches against the empty stool next to me. I take a moment to glance around the small café, noticing how much it has changed since I was last in here. The once whitewashed walls have been painted a deep purple, and a large map of the states has been hung on the long wall leading to the bathrooms. Over the doorway someone had wrote _'People always leave… but don't you forget about me.'_

"It sure has changed in here," I comment, twisting around to look at Karen as she wipes the counter down and places a soda in front of me.

"Yeah, well you can thank Lucas for that," she smiles and gesturing to one of the walls, and for the first time I saw it covered with small writing. "He must have read every book in here, followed by near enough every book in the library, and then he came in after it had been re-painted and put his favourite quotes across that wall. I still have no idea where he got the idea from."

"Actually I do the same in my room, just with lyrics and artwork," I add, with a small smile before looking down. "So what can I help you with?"

"Well I was trying out some new recipes for chocolate brownies, and I needed someone to sample them," she smiles, placing a plate of small squares in front of me, and I knew there was no way I could get out of it even if I wanted to, but I thought a bit of chocolate might help to improve my mood.

Picking up the first square, I bit into it, and immediately it felt like my jaw had been cemented together. Placing the remaining square into a 'no' pile, I concentrate on pulling my teeth apart, whilst Karen looks on amused.

"So I take it that's it's a no to the double caramel brownie?" she asks, picking up a notepad and tearing a page out of it to throw in the bin. "So you left so fast the other night we didn't really get a chance to catch up," she continues, glancing over my shoulder to make sure all the other customers were satisfied as I scowled. "What has that Rachel girl done to you?"

If it wasn't for the brownie I was sure that my jaw would have hit the floor. "What? How did you…?" I try to get out.

"Oh please," Karen scoffs. "I could spot her coming a mile away. It's just like when I was in high school."

I take a long drink to clear my mouth before replying. "Let's just say that there are rumours flying around school like wildfire about me," I admit looking down and playing with the edge of my glass. "I just couldn't be in there for a moment longer."

"Yep, I've been there," Karen replies knowingly, and I look up surprised. "Try getting pregnant in senior year... actually no, don't" she corrects herself with a laugh. "I think I fell from cheer captain to the bottom rung of the social ladder faster than it took the test to develop. At least your rumours aren't true. Just stay strong; today's news is tomorrow's trash."

I pick at the next brownie cautiously, mulling over her words as she disappears back into the kitchen. Behind me the door opens, causing a soft breeze to wash over my legs and play with my hair. A feeling of relief washes over me, and I know that even though my mom couldn't be with me physically, she had sent me the next best thing; Karen.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N – So I'm having a smidge of writer's block. I know where I want this story to go, but I'm having a bit of trouble getting there, but as I am a couple of chapters ahead, it shouldn't really affect up-dates.

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters.

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><p>A couple of hours later, and several batches of chocolate brownies, I arrive home, thankful that my dad's car is not in the drive. He must be out food shopping or something, considering I usually eat out whilst he isn't at home, therefore the cupboards must be empty.<p>

Manoeuvring my way upstairs, carefully, I enter my bedroom, turning on my computer so that it plays loud rock music. I hate being alone, so it was anything to kill the silence of the house. Throwing my crutches into a pile by the bed, I limp across the room into my bathroom, pulling my blonde curls into a knot on the back of my head whilst I search the shelves for make-up remover wipes. Looking up into the mirror above the sink, I wipe away the remaining mascara and eyeliner away from my green eyes, and I pause for a moment to sigh at my reflection. Today has been an unnecessarily long day, and it was still only mid-afternoon. Remembering that I said I was going back to school tomorrow fighting, I see the flash of fire behind my eyes, and I know that I had better start fighting now.

Reaching under the skin, I pull out a long roll of plastic bags and some tape, intent on wrapping my cast up so I could have a shower. Perching on the edge of the bath, I wrap the tape around the top of my thigh, holding the bag in place, before I reach over and turn the shower on. Knowing that it takes a few moments to come through warm, I hop carefully over to the hamper to pull out a clean towel, and I find the bright pink robe Brooke bought me for Christmas hiding, so I pull that out too.

Stepping over the edge of the bath I slide under the hot water, feeling it run in tracks down my face. Blindly reaching to the shelf, I locate the shampoo Brooke makes me buy to control my curls, scrunching it through my hair, hoping that it will somehow wash away the past couple of days. Balancing carefully I slide the razor up my one free leg, shuddering slightly when I picture the state of the other under the cast. Pushing it to the back of my mind, thinking I'll deal with it when I cross that bridge, I rinse my hair clean before finding the conditioner.

Ten minutes later I emerge from the bathroom wrapped in the pink robe and I drag my computer chair in front of the mirror to set about drying my hair properly. Rummaging around my drawers I find the heat defensive spray and curl definer that I bought on impulse months ago and only used once; then I set to work.

Over the noise of the hairdryer and the music, I hear my name being called. Shutting the hairdryer off, I roll across my room on the chair to turn the music down just as my dad pops his head around the corner.

"Hey sweetie," he smiles, taking in the pink robe with his eyebrow raised. "You're home early."

I glance quickly at the clock, knowing that school let out a little while ago. "Er... I didn't really see the point of staying for cheer practice," I reason logically, hoping that my voice doesn't give away the fact I'm lying. "Brooke will catch me up afterwards anyway, and hopefully I won't break my other leg with her new routine," I joke, breaking the tension.

"Soooo," my dad starts, breaking the silence after a couple of seconds and looking guilty. "Er... I have to leave on a job again, tonight after dinner."

I look at him in shock, but not completely surprised knowing that it was bound to happen. He had been given a few days extra leave when he explained about my injury, but considering I was up and around now there was no real reason why I needed him physically. Emotionally was a whole other thing, but I wasn't about to burden him with my troubles. I was used to getting by on my own.

"Oh, okay, fine," I sigh, concentrating back on my hair, surprised that long ringlets were forming without a fight. "What are you making for tea then?"

"Well considering I just spent the last couple of hours re-stocking all the cupboards, I don't really want to undo all that hard work... so I was thinking Chinese?" he grins, holding up the take-out menu that is usually stuck up next to the phone downstairs. Little does he know that I've memorised the entire menu, so looking at it isn't really necessary anymore.

"Er I'll have Kung Po Chicken with egg fried rice," I reply, after glancing at the menu for a split second and handing it back over. "I'll be down in a little bit once my hair is dry." I shout after him, as he disappears around the corner.

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><p>I'm sat watching mind numbing television, flicking channel every time advertisements start playing. I'm too bored to consider even moving from my position on the sofa, with my bad leg propped on the edge of the coffee table, and I'm still wrapped in my pink robe, but now with shorts and a vest top underneath that I've been using as PJ's.<p>

My dad left a few hours ago, and since then the sun had gone down but I was yet to get up to turn any lights on. The television is giving off a soft glow and the street lights are muted by the thin curtains. The fifth advert in a row for a new 'smart' phone is my final straw, thinking it must be about time for bed, I switch the TV off, plunging the room into near enough darkness, before limping carefully across the room. With my foot on the bottom step I hear someone knocking on the front door, which is strange as everyone that know me usually just walks in, but then I realize my dad must have locked it on his way out

Limping back down the hallway, I click the lock open and pull the door open, expecting to see Brooke on the other side, having snuck out of her house after her parents have gone to bed. Instead I see a figure heading down the porch steps, about to be swallowed by the darkness, and a shock of recognition floods me.

"Lucas?" I breathe out confused, and instantly I curse myself, knowing that he wouldn't have stopped if I hadn't spoken. I see him turn around, his deep blue eyes locking onto mine, and I instantly go defensive, pulling the neck of the robe tighter and folding my arms across my chest.

"Oh... hey Peyton," he eventually replies, stepping slightly closer into the circle given off by the porch light. "I didn't think you'd still be up."

"What are you doing here?" I question, cutting off his small talk and getting straight to the point. I take my weight off my cast and lean against the doorframe, subconsciously letting him know I'm not about to invite him in.

"Er... I just came to see if you're okay. I saw you cut out of school earlier, but in between doing a shift at the garage followed by closing up the cafe, it's the first spare moment I've had," he explains quickly, taking in my stance and not moving any closer. "Plus it is kind of my fault you're in this mess."

I roll my eyes at him, "Er you think?" I sigh, relaxing slightly, ready to go back inside. "Let's face it Luke, we can't just fall back into being friends again, there's twelve years worth of crap between us. If you knew me at all you would have spoken up against Rachel earlier, instead of letting her bitch about me." I move to shut the door, hopping back slightly. "Seriously Lucas I'm fine, I'm a big girl now and I don't need you worrying about me."


	8. Chapter 8

A/N – So this is a slightly longer chapter, with a better interaction between Lucas and Peyton (considering he hasn't really been present for the last couple of chapters). I up-dated sooner than I anticipated, thanks to EmmaJoie and her very nice review (you totally made my day lol). I thank everyone who has taken their time to review me.

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters.

PS – I've just started watching White Collar (which is awesome). I totally recommend it (even if it is just to stare at the guy who plays Neal Caffrey (Mr. Matt Bomer, yes please) lol.

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><p>The next day at school I make it all the way through to the end of the day. Clicking into the gym, I take a seat a couple of step up on the bleachers ready to watch the cheerleader's practice, having been threatened into attending by Brooke this morning. Her reasoning being that I could watch from a distance like the judges to make sure spacing is correct and that it looks effective, whilst learning the routine ready for when my cast comes off.<p>

Throwing my crutches to the floor, I pull out my sketchpad, with the intension of taking notes, but quickly become immersed in a small line drawing in the corner of a pair of intense eyes which strip me of my defensive walls. Looking up, I focus my attention of the cheerleaders, purposely ignoring the basketball players as they practice at the opposite end of the gym, knowing that if I look that way I won't be able to tear my eyes away. I was awake for a couple of hours after closing the door in Lucas' face, wondering if I had been too harsh on him, but after replaying our conversion for the hundredth time, the words began to loose meaning, and I was pulled into the darkness of sleep.

Adding a final section of shading to the eyelashes, I watch as Brooke calls a time out after attempting the modified move that broke my leg, and the cheerleaders break off into small groups whilst Brooke continues dancing in front of the full length mirrors, trying to correct the problem.

"Hey Brooke," Rachel shouts across the gym from where she is stood in front of me at the bottom of the bleachers, and some of the basketball players look up from shooting free-throws. "Instead of the 'high V' combination after the lift, why don't you get some of the girls to do the splits? I'm sure Peyton will be more than willing to stretch her legs when she gets back."

I roll my eyes behind her back, having heard innuendoes for most of the day from her, but she was quickly getting on my last nerve. Most of the students didn't blink twice at me when I walked in this morning, and the ones that did I just ignored until they got bored or distracted, but Rachel had been provoking me since first lesson.

"Thanks for the suggestion _Rach_, but there is a reason I'm cheer captain and not you, so we are going to do things my way and actually _win_," Brooke calls back cheerfully, flipping her hair over her shoulder and wiggling slightly.

I smile at Brooke's response, knowing that she is secretly defending me whilst bringing Rachel down (She hates being called 'Rach'). I stand up; ready to make my way over to Brooke with my suggestions, and drop my sketchpad back into my bag, just as Rachel turns around to check I'm still in hearing distance.

"Well it was just a suggestion, considering how good she is at spreading her legs. It's just too bad that her mother isn't around to see how _flexible_ she had become. Although it's probably best, because now she doesn't know that she raised her daughter to be able to perform stripper moves!"

I know that most of the gym has fallen silent at Rachel's last words and in the distance I hear Brooke gasp, but all I know is that my hand has curled itself into a fist ready to be slammed into her jaw. Ignoring the fact that my leg is screaming at me in pain, I stride forwards, knowing that if I move fast enough I might still have the element of surprise, I grab her shoulder to twist her around and for a split second I see her smirk before my fist makes contact with every bit of upper body strength I can find.

"How dare you!" I yell at her, quickly adjusting my balance as she stumbles backwards, fully intent of slamming my fist forward again. Just as my fist makes contact the second time, someone's arms snake around my waist, pulling me backwards away from where Rachel is on the floor.

Rachel is quickly trying to scramble to her feet, with blood poring from her split lip and I fight against the restraints with my blonde curls falling forwards around my face, desperate to vent some more of my anger out on her. My breathing come out broken as I fight, but the arms only hold me tighter, forming an unbreakable band and pulling my backwards into their chest.

Whitey steps between us, cutting off my concentration on her, and I feel the fight leaving my body which is quickly replaced by a pain in my heart. "Get her to the nurse's office," Whitey grumbles, and some of the other cheerleaders grab Rachel by the arms and disappear into the locker rooms. "I know you said you were going to fight this thing, but I didn't think you meant it literally," he mumbles under his breath to me.

The door slamming closed echoes across the silent room and the pain in my heart rips through my chest, filling my eyes with tears and causing me to shake. "I've got you. It's okay," the owner of the restraining arms whispers gently into my ear, turning me around and I burry my head into his chest as he pulls me in closer. The tears quickly over-flow, causing my breath to hitch and my broken leg is screaming at me, ready to give out. Tremors run up and down my back, and his hands stroke my hair reassuringly. "Peyt?" I hear him question quietly. "Do you trust me?"

The words are slow to register, but I nod against his shoulder, burying my face further into his basketball jersey. I feel his muscles move, and one of his hands frees itself from my hair. "I promise I'm not going anywhere," I hear his voice rumble through his chest, as he slides one hand underneath my knees, lifting me into his arms bridal style, just as my legs are about to give out.

Sitting down on the bottom of the bleachers, he keeps me tucked against his chest, quietly letting my tears flow whilst whispering reassuring words into my hair. Catching my fingers from where they are resting limply against my thigh, he gently moves my hand to rest against his chest and I can feel his heart beat underneath my fingertips. The steady rhythm gives me something else to think about, and it allows me to get my breathing under control. Taking a final deep breath I fill my lungs with his unique guy smell, and somehow the pain in my heart decreases to just the usual dull ache.

Pulling back slightly I un-stick my cheek from his shirt, brushing my fingertips across my cheeks to wipe away the final few tears. Blinking rapidly I manage to focus on the black damp mark staining the once white shirt and the underside of a strong jaw. The arms around me loosened slightly, allowing me to move backwards without letting me go.

"Hey, do you want me to take you home?" Lucas twists around slightly to look at me, freeing my hand from where it is being held against his chest to brush my hair back away from my face. He gently holds my gaze, and I nod, reluctant to move away and break this protective feeling that has washed over me.

Sliding me gently to one side, I watch as he grabs my bag and crutches, and a feeling over déjà-vu hits me as I slowly clamber to my feet. My injured leg is throbbing painfully, and I think I may have to get it checked out to make sure I haven't damaged it further. Lucas keeps hold of my bag, walking slowly at my pace, seemingly without thinking about it and resting one hand gently on my lower back. The gym is now deserted. Whitey must have finished practice early, and with another cheerleader down, Brooke must have given up for the day as well.

Automatically heading across the parking lot to his car, I hesitate for a second when I see Jake nervously leaning against Lucas' car, watching our approach. Lucas must have felt the muscles in my back tense, so he quietly ran his fingertips up my back until I continue walking at my normal pace. When we are about twenty feet away, Jake moves away from the side of the car, approaching slowly and I see in his hands a strange shaped object, which on closer inspection I realize is Lucas' school bag and street clothes bundled together, with his car keys resting on top.

Without a word, Jake silently hands them over to Lucas, who lets go of me in order to accept them, before Jake turns his attention to me. Looking up, I see him scan my face for a moment, before reaching out to trail his thumb across my cheek, wiping away a stray tear. For a second I think he is going to say something, but then he is gone, walking away back in the direction of the gym.

I look back over to Lucas with what I hoped was a confused and questioning expression on my face, but he just shrugs his shoulders before opening the passenger door for me.

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><p>AN – So I'm hoping that Jake came off protective, checking that Peyton was safe with Lucas, whilst checking she was ok still. I'm trying to make Jake a good guy (not that there are particularly any bad guys in this story, just Rachel lol).


	9. Chapter 9

A/N – So this is quite a big chapter because I have put two together (just because I'm feeling nice). It would have been up earlier but I've been cleaning my house (I've only got the upstairs hovering to do now woo hoo, not that you really need to know lol), then I had a power cut. I hope you like. Lucas doesn't really make an appearance as it's mainly a filler chapter, but please bear with me.

Reviews are always appreciated, and as always I do not own OTH or any of the characters x

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><p>"Alright Blondie!" Brooke shouts over my music, clomping her way up my stairs, and I know without looking she is wearing huge heels. I sigh shutting my computer up; putting the lid back on my pen and swivelling around on my computer chair to look at my bedroom door, where she appears moments later with her hands on her hips and her brown eyes flashing. "Why on earth didn't you tell me about broody blonde boy?" she asks, kicking her silver stilettos off into a pile by the door.<p>

"What... are you talking about Brooke?" I ask confused, dropping my pen back onto my desk and closing my sketchpad.

"I'm talking about you and Lucas having a secret affair behind my back," she states clearly, jumping onto my bed, and I turn back to look at her in shock. "It's no wonder Rachel has been being a super bitch recently considering the sparks between the two of you this afternoon. You should have seen the way he swooped in to save you; he must have sprinted across the length of the gym."

I roll my eyes at her, knowing full well she is exaggerating but I can't help the blush that rises in my cheeks. I stand up and walk into my wardrobe, under the pretence of finding something, hoping desperately that she doesn't notice. I rummage around for a few minutes, hoping in that time she gets distracted, whilst trying to find a tin of black paint and a fine paint brush. I had been listening to 30 Seconds to Mars' new album before Brooke walked in, and one of the lyrics is now stuck in my head. Just the phrasing of the thought had struck a nerve and I felt the need to write it on my wall.

"So at least now we know who started the rumours," Brooke states as I limp back across the room, and I watch as she flips over on the bed, letting her hair cascade down the side, almost touching the floor. "I've been asking around about those by the way," she continues, reaching over to my nightstand to grab her bottle of nail varnish and begins to apply it whilst upside-down. "Apparently some girl called Haley was venting after you left the party, which must have been where she got her leverage from."

"Yeah I figured out that it was her about 30 seconds after you told me Monday morning," I reply sarcastically, lightly sketching the words out across my red painted wall using a pencil. "Actually I knew she was going to do something the moment she walked in on me and Luke talking Friday night."

"Well I think you punching Rachel and Lucas only coming to _your_ rescue has officially ended her quest for him," Brooke laughs before continuing. "So now you're definitely over both Nathan and Jake, it means I can now put 'Team Leyton' into operation."

"Speaking of Jake, I had a weird moment outside the gym earlier," I glance at her, and quickly explain what happened.

"Wow, that is quite strange," Brooke replies, with her eyebrows furrowed in thought. "Perhaps he is just looking out for you. He is your friend after all, and Lucas has just popped up into your life randomly.

"Yeah, I suppose... Hang on a minute; let's just backtrack a second... 'Team Leyton'?" I question, looking at her and wondering what the hell she is going on about. Usually I am able to follow her train of thought, but sometime she deviates away from her usual randomness and I have trouble connecting the dots.

"Never mind," Brooke brushes off, and I turn back to drawing on the wall, thinking that she is up to something even if she won't tell me yet. "So how excited are you for the Secret Sparkle Classic in two weeks? I think I've finally figured out what is wrong with the routine."

"Er... Brooke, you're forgetting one thing. My cast doesn't come off until after the competition, so I can't go with you."

"Oh nonsense," Brooke smiles as me, as I wedge the pencil into my hair and pull the top off the paint. "I've totally fixed it so you're allowed to come, just don't mention it to anyone else."

I roll my eyes again even though she can't see me, and I resign myself into getting dragged to the National Cheerleading Competition. If Brooke has her way, I'm sure that I will be stuck wearing the uniform and matching ribbons in my hair, and maybe even get forced to paint my cast in the school's colours. At least this way I won't get to miss the basketball championships which are being held at the same place the next day.

We are silent for a few minutes whilst Brooke continues painting her nails a shocking colour of pink that matches her top and I carefully smooth black paint over the pencil marks. Adjusting my weight on my leg, I take a hesitant step back to see the overall effect, reading the lyrics back to myself quietly, '_Can you imagine a time when the truth ran free; the birth of a song and the death of a dream – Closer to the edge.'_

"Did you say something?" Brooke questions, wafting her nails around to dry them as she turns around to look at me, and I just point to the words as an explanation, but I know they won't have the same effect on her. Brooke was definitely a music person. As long as the song as a good beat and she can dance to it, that's as far as Brooke goes, whereas I was definitely a lyrics person. The first thing I do having bought a new album is pull out the booklet to decipher the lyrics.

"I don't get it?" Brooke quirks her eyebrow at me, re-reading the words before looking to me, and I just roll my eyes in response.

"Never mind," I giggle, when she flips back over and starts to paint her toe nails the same colour.

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><p>Two weeks later, just as I predicted, we are stood behind the scenes waiting for 'our' turn to perform. We had checked into the hotel in Charlotte late last night, and after a quick rehearsal Brooke had ordered everyone to bed for a good nights sleep. Naturally Brooke and I are sharing a room, which I thought was a good idea until she woke me up at the crack of dawn to get ready. You would think after being friends for well over ten years that she would know by now that I am not a morning person, and considering I'm not even technically competing, I responded with a few mumbled swear words before pulling the covers back over my head. That plan was quickly killed after Brooke started to hyperventilate about the routine, and I had to get out of bed to talk her off the ledge before she decided to scrap sections of it completely.<p>

Glancing around, every girl looked immaculate in bright blue, black and white cheer uniforms, with matching ribbons braided into the front section of their hair and the letter R tattooed perfected on their left cheek. Brooke had even gotten to me, using to her ability the fact I couldn't run away too fast, and used extra long ribbons to criss-cross down my cast. I didn't complain too much, knowing how nervous she was, and I didn't think provoking her would do me any good, no matter how fun it would be.

"Urgh," Brooke sighed, staring down at my leg in annoyance and I visibly jumped not knowing she was behind me. "Why couldn't you have exchanged that ugly cast for a support brace yesterday instead of next week?" she griped, staring out at the performing cheerleader from where we stood in the wings. "At least you could have taken _that_ off whilst we performed..." she continued to mutter, and I rolled my eyes at her knowing that the attitude would wear off as soon as she set foot on the stage.

"Go and show them how it's done!" I smile at her, pushing her gently out onto the stage as the commentator announced 'The Tree Hill Ravens'. When they were in position I hit play on the mixed CD I made, after Brooke had asked me to find her perfect song with a strong beat that would compliment her chorography.

The routine went perfectly. Brooke had totally fixed the move that broke my leg, and even Rachel didn't have anything to complain about. They finished perfectly, with Brooke at the front wearing her 'cheer smile' which showed off her dimples to perfection, and I heard a massive roar go up from the stands, and I knew without looking that it was coming from the basketball team, who had scheduled their practices with Whitey so that they could watch.

At the front I could see Haley stood next to Jake, cheering as loud as the rest of them, and I smiled at her enthusiasm. A couple of days after my melt down she had come to see me whilst I sitting in the library catching up on homework.

"_Hey Peyton," someone calls out quietly behind me, and I raise my eyes from the blank piece of paper that I had been willing into an English essay for the past ten minutes to see Haley stood picking her nails in front of me. "Can I talk to you?"_

"_Er... yeah course," I reply confused, and I reach over to clear part of the table. "Sit down," I offer, biting on the end of my pen and trying not to jump to conclusions._

"_I just wanted to say sorry about what happened Monday morning," she began, lowering her eyes to the table top and picking the edge. "I think it's kind of my fault."_

"_What? How?" I question, raising my eyebrows at her because I was sure that Rachel had started the rumours._

"_Er... after you left the party... and I had been drinking... I sort of remember ranting about you and Nathan to someone, but everything is kind of fuzzy," she tried to explain. "It's only when I heard about the rumours and the comments that Rachel was making that I put two and two together. I'm so sorry."_

"_Oh my god," I whispered quietly, before speaking at a normal level. "Haley this isn't your fault. Rachel was going to start something even if you hadn't vented to her," I reason logically. "But can I ask you something?"_

"_Er... sure," she replies hesitantly, for the first time looking up to me, and blushing._

_I quickly change my question, having gotten my answer to the original one without a word being said. "What the hell is Shakespeare talking about in this scene?" I ask, sliding the book towards her and pointing to a paragraph. Haley laughs in response, and begins to explain old English language to me._

A few seconds later Brooke comes bouncing off the stage, almost colliding with me with excitement, breaking me from daydream as she wrapped her arms around my shoulders. "Oh my god, that was so good!" she squealed in my ear, nearly deafening me. "We are so celebrating tonight," she shouted, wrapping her arm around the nearest cheerleader and inviting everyone to the impromptu party she had just decided on. "After we win we have to go and get ready, and I have the perfect outfit for you," she continued, glancing over to me with a sparkle in her eye that made me instantly worried.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N – as always I do not own OTH or any of the characters, and I appreciate any and all reviews x

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><p>A couple of hours later, and two trophies later for Brooke, one for first place and one for best choreography, we were sneaking past Coach Durham's room down to the hotel's basement. Brooke had spent a good ten minutes with her phone stuck to her ear, before ordering me to go for a shower whilst she slipped out of our room to sweet talk the guys on reception into letting her rent the small function room without anyone else knowing.<p>

Pressing the button on the lift, I ran my eyes over my reflection in the sliding doors. Brooke had dressed me in a shimmery green halter-neck top, which intensified my eyes, and a short black skirt that had layers of ruffled chiffon covering the shortest section, so that it rippled down around my thighs. One again I had to extend the length of my crutches to accommodate the high silver stiletto that I have borrowed from Brooke, which stretched out my long legs to the best of their advantage. She had also done my hair and make-up, so I was now sporting artistically arranged ringlet curls and natural looking make-up that highlighted my eyes.

"Oh it is so on tonight," Brooke smiles at me as we slide into the room. Most of the cheerleaders and basketball players are already here. Brooke had timed everyone, so that they sneaked out of their rooms in twos or threes, and they were celebrating in small groups around the dimly lit room. Over in one corner there was a table filled with snack food, the stuff Brooke usually bans in the run up to a competition and adjacent to that was a table filled with drinks.

"You never work so hard at anything in comparison to your fake ID," I giggle at Brooke as she sashayed her way across the room in her slinky black dress and skyscraper heels, to open a bottle of vodka, and she just flipped her hair over her shoulder in response.

"Well we all have to have a talent," she eventually replied, handing me a plastic cup. "I just happen to have two, one of which is WINNING CHEERLEADING COMPETITIONS!" she shouted the end of the sentence attracting everyone's attention, who cheered in response, holding up their own plastic cups. My eyes fly to the door when it creaks open, and Lucas slides through looking sheepish followed by some guy named Mouth who podcasts the games over the internet for the fans who couldn't travel with us. Usually he keeps himself in him room on trips like this, only emerging to practice and play, so his presence confused me, until I realized Brooke had instructed everyone to attend.

I turn my attention away from him, clicking my cup against Brookes before taking a gulp, and almost choked when the bitter taste of alcohol took my breath away. "Holy crap Brooke! What the hell did you put in this?" I question, coughing and reaching for the bottle of soda to water it down.

"Erm, vodka..." Brooke replied, conveniently ignoring my gaze as she dropped under the table to get more cups.

"Vodka and ...?" I push her, and then I realize the truth. "That was pure vodka? What _are_ you trying to do to me?"

I watch in disbelief as she just grins wickedly at me, before disappearing into the crowd to socialise and I head over to the stereo to put on some decent music before somebody else gets there and puts some rubbish on again. Haley comes over after a few minutes and we chat quietly, watching everyone slowly become more and more wasted, and I fight to keep my eyes away from Lucas.

"So, are you not drinking?" I question, tipping my cup towards the table, and smile as she rolls her eyes at me.

"Er, no. I think this time I'll limit what I drink so I don't do anything I regret," she smirks at me, and then her face drops when she sees Rachel sliding her way up to Nathan.

"Yeah, that _is_ probably the sensible thing to do," I reply with a laugh, finishing the remainder of my cup before heading back over to the drinks table. "Oh and don't worry about that," I throw over my shoulder, nodding my head discretely in Nathan's direction. "He's got enough brain cells to know to stay away from _her_."

Sure enough, ten seconds later Nathan disengages himself from Rachel's grip and heads towards me. I hold out the bottle of vodka for him, but he just shakes his head, picking up a soda instead, and I raise my eyebrows at him.

"I can run the risk of being hung over tomorrow, because Dan would kill me" he explains, emptying the contents into a cup. "But I can keep up appearances," he laughs, clinking his cup with mine and I laugh with him. The incident between us has quickly been forgotten, and the promise of never mentioning it again was made between us without being said, so we were able to fall back into being friends easily.

I continued the night mixing with everyone, joining in conversations without actually being a part of them, as I constantly had one eye on Brooke the whole night, watching as she took the celebrating a little too far, but so were some of the other cheerleaders. I was slowly becoming quieter and quieter, having consumed more alcohol that I first thought thanks to Brooke constantly re-appearing with a new cup, but I manage to stay in control unlike her.

Crossing the room to where Brooke was sat, her heels in a pile on the floor, and her bare feet tucked underneath her, and she was slowly falling asleep wrapped in someone's varsity jacket.

"Hey Nate," I slur, catching his attention immediately even though it looked like he was in an intense conversation with Haley, who was blushing again. "You're still sober, right?"

"Er, yeah of course," he replied, glancing over Brooke as she shuffled in her sleep, and then back to Haley as she swayed slightly on the spot.

"Can you sort out who else is still sober, so they can take care of people that are too far gone?" I question, and he nods in response. "We'll have to do it discretely so Whitey doesn't wake up," I quickly tag on as he is cutting across the room to where Jake is stood, and whispering something in his ear, causing him to look in our direction and nod.

"Hey. I'll look after Brooke," Jake smiles as he reaches where I am stood resting on my crutches, and I just nod in response trusting him, and watching quietly as he gently pulls Brooke up from the chair, and half carries her back in the direction of the lift.

I turn back around, just in time to see Bevin climb onto Lucas lap, brandishing what looked like a lip gloss in his direction and his laugh carries across the room. "Hey Haley," I mutter, looking at her where she is sat in the chair that Brooke just vacated. "I'm going the bathroom. Don't leave without me."

I bolt around the corner, draining my cup again, before pushing my way through the wooden doors and crashing against the ceramic sinks. Twisting the tap on, I push my hands under the cold water, not really feeling the temperature due to my nerves being fuzzy from alcohol. Looking up into the mirror, it takes me a second or two to focus properly, and I try to banish the image of Lucas' smile from my mind, but it doesn't work. I bite my bottom lip, and will my self to focus on the task in hand, getting everyone back into their room without getting a month's worth of detentions.

Pushing any feeling that I might be having to the back of my mind, I re-enter the room only to see Nathan and Haley left. Picking up Brooke's shoes off the floor, I click towards the lift, pressing the button as Nathan decides it will be quicker to carry Haley, and I smile knowing that she had intended not to get drunk.

Reaching the right floor, all of the rooms behind the identical doors seemed to be quiet, and I fumbled around in my tiny bag trying to find the key card.

"This is my room, right?" I question Nathan, pointing at one of the blank doors, trying to read the number, as he shifted Haley's weight slightly to pull his own card out of his pocket.

"Er, yeah I think so. Brooke is staying in Jake's room, just in case she throws up, so you should..."

"Just make sure you take care of Haley," I cut him off, pushing the card into the slot on the third attempt and watching carefully as the light goes green.

"But Peyton..." Nathan starts, but I just roll my eyes and close the door in his face. Dropping Brooke's shoes into a pile by the door, my bag quickly follows suit, and I stumble across the room and drop onto my side of the bed, closing my eyes and breathing a sigh of... disappointment? Or maybe it was annoyance... I couldn't quite figure out which.

Opening my eyes again, I reach down to pull my shoe off, just as the lights flick on and I swing my attention around to be met by the confused stare of Lucas as he sat up under the covers.

"Luke?" I question in shock, and I lose my balance off the edge of the bed, landing in a heap on the floor, tangled with my crutches.

"Shit Peyton," he curses, quickly untangling himself from the sheets to help me back up again, but all I can do is stare at him.

"What... are you doing in my room?" I eventually mange to form a sentence, forcing my legs to co-operate as he all but picks me up to sit me back on the bed and moves my crutches out of the way.

"You where supposed to be staying in Nathan's room so he could keep an eye on you and Haley," he tries to explain, as I move to grip onto his shoulder to stop the room from spinning as he kneels in front of me. "Are you drunk? Again?" he questions, staring at me as he gently holds my ankle to pull my shoe off.

"Are you wearing eye shadow?" was my only response after I catch a flash of bright blue as he looks down.

"Yeah, apparently I have to show more school spirit, so Bevin got to me."

"Bevin... right..." I whisper, trying to ignore the pain in my chest, and I bite my bottom lip again.

"Peyt... what's wrong?" Lucas questions, his eyes searching my face for a response, and I can't stop my breathing from accelerating. I stare into his eyes for a moment, before realising what my body is trying to tell me.

"Bathroom..." I manage to get out, bolting from my place on the bed, and pushing past him, skidding to a stop on the tiled floor just in time.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N – so thanks to everyone who has taken their time to review, I love getting those emails through lol. Because I've been up-dating quite frequently, you have read all of my progress, so it might be slightly slower from now on, depending on how much writing time I have. (If my bf found out I've written over 26,000 words instead of looking for a new job I would never hear the end of it, plus I would get called a complete geek, but ah well lol).

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters.

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><p>My mind is awake well before I open my eyes, but the pain in my head is threatening to kill me, and I know it will only get worse when I eventually admit that I'm awake so I'm putting off the inevitable. My cast is resting across my ankle, cutting off the circulation to my foot, so I twist around under the covers, rolling over and stretching my good leg out. Grabbing part of the duvet to wrap around my back, my hand connects with something other than blankets, and the person exhales suddenly in surprise and I know that it's not Brooke in bed next to me.<p>

Pulling my eyes open, fighting against the dried on mascara I feel a wave of embarrassment flood over me when I lock onto deep blue eyes. "Luke?" I breathe; my throat is dry and sore, affecting my voice. "Oh god, how drunk was I last night?" I cringe, whilst discreetly pulling the duvet closer to me.

"Er... drunk enough to throw up and pass out in the bathroom," he replies with a smile, and I feel like he is laughing at me. "I had to carry you over to the bed, and you woke up to have a conversation about cookies, before passing out again."

I ignore the fact I was rambling in my sleep, brushing it to the side. "Urgh... let me guess, Brooke was mixing my drinks last night," the smile that graces his lips gives me my answer. "I feel like you're always saving me... and like there is a giant elephant sat on my head."

"Yeah there's not much I can do to save you from that," he jokes, stretching over to the nightstand to pass me a bottle of water. "And I can't save you from the 'cheering' you have to do in a few hours."

"Oh thank god the most I have to do is stand at the side," I mumble, sitting up slightly and opening the bottle. "Okay what _am_ I wearing?"

"That would be my shirt," Lucas replies with a laugh. "You woke up in the middle of the night and demanded it as you wanted to use it as PJ's."

"Oh my god," I mumbled.

"It's okay, you pulled it on over what you were already wearing," he reassured me, but that didn't stop the blush from rising in my cheeks. I burry my head into my pillow again, trying to stop him from noticing my embarrassment. "I'm going to and have a shower," he smirks at me and slides out of bed. "Why don't you get some more sleep and I'll wake you back up again in a bit."

I mumble a reply, desperately trying to ignore his movements and keep my eyes away from his bare toned chest. I hear the bathroom door click shut, and I curl up on my side waiting for sleep to take me again. Shuffling slightly, I grab a spare pillow, tucking it against my chest and the comforting scent of Lucas assaults my nose. I instantly feel safe and I fall off the edge into darkness.

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><p>I click into the gym behind the rest of the cheerleaders, and we line up down one side against the wall waiting for the game to begin. My head is still pounding, which isn't being helped my Brooke annoying me every five seconds, grilling me for details about what happened last night. Even if I could remember, and it's not exactly like I'm pushing my brain to clear away the fog, I'm not going to share with her anything. It would cause her to squeal so loud, and I didn't want that kind of attention on me, especially when I am stood so close to Rachel and her minions.<p>

"Tell me," she whispers, just as the basketball team jogs past and group together at the bottom of the bleachers waiting for Whitey's team talk. I roll my eyes at her, instantly wishing that I hadn't as it made the room spin, and I try not to let my eyes wander back over to the team, or specifically across Lucas' strong shoulders. Now that I know what is hidden under the shirt I have a hard time ripping my eyes away from him.

"Brooke, concentrate on cheering," I whisper back to her, before shuffling back slightly to lean against the wall out of the way, and she gives me a look to say 'this isn't over' before attracting the rest of the squad's attention just as the team steps out onto the court.

The game begins, and the Tree Hill Ravens instantly take control of the game. Without having to join in on the cheers I am able to watch how the team operates, and I instantly notice that they seem to be working together much better than usual. In fact, I come to the conclusion that Nathan seems to be co-operating better with Lucas, passing the ball to him more which is giving our team even more advantage and pushing the score up even further.

At half time the cheerleaders take to the floor, doing yesterday's routine but with less energy than yesterday considering most of the squad were nursing hangovers. Surprisingly none of the basketball team seems to be suffering, until I come to the conclusion it is because Nathan told them all, without a shadow of a doubt, that if they took a drink last night he would bench them for the rest of the season. He's not usually such a tyrant, but I know that this is a qualifying game that would take them into the playoffs for the state championship.

It's nearing the end of the game and Nathan dribbles the ball closer to where we are stood. I can see his brain working overtime as two of the other team tries to double team him, and he glances for a second at the score board. Without even looking, he passes the ball backwards to where Lucas is stood on the three point line, who automatically catches it. My eyes are transfixed as his muscles stretch, flexing upwards and the ball arcs perfectly to the hoop, just as the final buzzer sounds. The Ravens are heading to the state championship having won the game by a staggering 22 points.

The cheerleaders run enthusiastically onto the court, and I laugh as Brooke jumps onto Jake's back, laughing hysterically and Haley runs down from the bleachers to join in, before looking slightly queasy. Nathan notices, and he wraps his arms around her waist as she breathes slowly for a moment before smiling again.

Glancing up into the stands for a moment I notice Dan Scott watching Nathan, with an expression on his face that I could only describe as pure hatred and I know it's because Nathan gave away the final shot, affecting his game statistics. That's all that Dan cared about. Good enough stats to impress the scouts.

The rest of the crowd follow Haley's lead, flooding onto the court and surrounding the players and cheerleaders, but I stay on the edge of the celebration, not wanting to jump around on one foot with long pieces of metal. I'm sure I've bruised enough people whilst I've been stuck with them already. I laugh when I see Brooke quickly slide off Jake's back and she bolts out of the crowd in the direction of the bathroom.

Following her sedately, I push open the gym doors and I hear the bathroom doors at the other end of the hall slam closed. Damn Brooke can run when she needs to. The sounds of the celebration die down as I reach the middle of the corridor, but picks up for a moment as the door behind me opens and slams closed again.

"Peyton?" someone from behind me questions, and I already know who it is. The sound of his voice will be something I know forever, and I'm sure it will always have an effect on my heart.

I turn around slowly as he jogs the distance between us, and without warning he wraps his arms around me, lifting me slightly off my feet, and I can feel the excitement rolling off him. My hands automatically slide across his shoulders, coming to rest at the back of his neck and my fingers play with his damp hair.

"Nice shot," I whisper having not yet re-gained my breath, as he gently sets me back on my feet, before looking embarrassed at being so forward. "I'd... I'd better go and check on Brooke," I force out, breaking the silence that has formed between us, but I'm unwilling to move away from him and my gaze drops down to his lips. I can feel my breathing accelerate, and I am fully aware that his hands are still resting against my hips, and my fingers have yet to untangle themselves from his hair. My mind goes into overdrive, wondering how the hell we got from barely knowing each other to this point in just over three weeks.

Unconsciously I tilt my chin up slightly, as he moves one of his hands from my hip and his fingertips trace the edge of my jaw. A shiver runs down the length of my back, and I instinctively pull him closer answering the unspoken question in his eyes.

"PEYTON!" I hear Brooke scream from down the hall, followed by the unmistakeable sound of retching, and it breaks the moment. Breaking eye contact, I take a wobbly breath as Lucas steps backwards slightly, causing my hands to slide out of his hair and his hands drop from my skin.

"Go and check on her," he mumbles under his breath, and I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks once again. For a split second I catch his eye, and he smiles wistfully before turning to disappear back into the gym.

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><p>AN – so please don't hate me for that. It is going to happen, but Brooke needs to put 'Team Leyton' into operation first.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N – to all my very lovely readers, I was going to up-date yesterday, but then they dragged me into work, so here it is (slightly longer than usual, as my muse is alive and kicking apparently lol).

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters. (And I am extremely happy that season 8 is going to air over here on e4 next Monday, plus I am going to see Bon Jovi in Manchester tomorrow night (cut to me bopping around my living room) lol).

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><p>"OMG!" Brooke squeals, nearly rupturing my ear drum, and I know for definite it was a good idea to fill her in whilst we were alone. "I can't believe I ruined your moment. Don't ever let me have another drink again," she rambles on, and I can't help but smile.<p>

"Speaking of drinking, did you plan for me to end up in the same room as Lucas that night, or was it a coincidence?" I ask the question that has been bugging me for days.

"Oh Honey, trust me, with the amount I consumed that night, it was pure coincidence," she smiles, before tagging on. "If I _had_ planned it, I would have locked you both in the room at the beginning of the night, having convinced you to go find something for me."

It had been well over a week since we had won the cheerleading competition and the Ravens qualified for the state championship, but the school was still in celebration mode, along with some of the teachers using the excuse that the Easter break was just around the corner and it involved too much effort to try to settle the students into working.

Even Karen, Lucas' mom, was joining in with the celebration and she was holding an all-ages masquerade party over at her night club, Tric. Somehow I had been dragged into the planning as I was walking past her cafe to get to the record store earlier in the week.

"_Peyton!" I hear my name being called from across the street and I had a strange sense of déjà vu again. Turning slowly on my crutches I see Karen carrying a massive box in her arms whilst attempting to unlock the cafe door. "A little help, please," she smiles at me, jingling the keys, and I glance up and down the street before crossing._

"_What _are_ you doing?" I question, taking the keys and squeezing past her to the lock, before pulling the door open and wedging my cast against it to hold it open as she walked past. I follow behind her, and quickly scan around the cafe, understanding why it wasn't open. "What have you been up to?"_

_Sliding the box on to the only free table, Karen turns to smile at me before unpacking. "I bought this lot for the party over at Tric," she explains, gesturing to the banners and balloons. "But the delivery guys messed up and brought it here. Lucas is supposed to be helping, but he got called in for an emergency practice or something." She continues, carrying packets into the kitchen, before reappearing with a can of soda. _

"_When is this party supposed to be happening?" I question, knowing that Brooke hadn't mentioned it, and she is usually the first to know._

"_Er... just over a week," she smiles at me, shifting another box so that I can sit down. "You don't fancy helping do you?"_

"_I'm not sure how much use I'll be," I try to get out of it slyly, gesturing down to my leg. "It's not like I can do any heavy lifting."_

"_Actually I was more in need of your artistic skills... you know creating a flyer so that people know about it, and helping out with the music side of things."_

_I know that my jaw has dropped open, but I can't seem to do anything about it. It must have been well over three weeks since I mentioned music and art to her in passing during our conversation, and I felt touched that she had remembered. "Really?" I question eventually. "What kind of flyer did you have in mind?"_

"_Well the party is going to be masquerade to help break down some of the social cliques, so if you can incorporate that it would be good, along with date, time and location. After that, you pretty much have a free rein."_

"_Oh wow... do you want me to start now?" I question, my hand already itching to find a pen and all thoughts of the record store had evaporated from my mind._

"Oh I've just had the most brilliant idea," Brooke broke back into my train of thought, bouncing across the room to steal a piece of paper and the pen I was in the process of using, before jumping back onto the bed and scribbling furiously. Rolling my eyes at her, I lean back in my computer chair to locate another pen so that I could carry on sketching, as I know that I wouldn't get anymore sense out of Brooke until she had finished her 'brilliant idea.'

Chewing on the end of the new pen, I add some detail onto the scene in front of me, capturing Haley's slightly queasy look perfectly, and adding in the blur that is Brooke as she heads towards the doors. Standing up, I shuffled over to my wall, sticking the finished picture among the collection of newspaper clippings that I had plastered up over the past couple of days. One article in particular, from Thud magazine, had managed to capture the moment as the ball reached the net, with both Lucas and Nathan looking up and watching its progress. From that picture it was painfully obvious that they were related, with the only difference between them being hair colour.

Immediately next to the article was the original finished copy of the flyer I had drawn up for Karen, before getting a couple hundred printed for her. Across the top were the words 'House of Freaks at Tric' and underneath that there was a drawing of two people, one dressed as an angel and the other a knight in shining armour, very similar to the scene in Baz Luhrmann's version of Romeo and Juliet (staring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes), however I had sketched in a version of Haley and Nathan. Haley had wanted to kill me when she found out, but unless you were looking it wasn't that obvious, and I used the fact Brooke hadn't even noticed it was them as my escape.

"Brooke?" I question, trying to attract her attention, but I just get a grunt in reply. "Brooke!"

"Yeah," she replies vaguely, drawing long sweeping lines across the page, which by my reckoning should be completely black by now, and my pen must be ruined, but I didn't really mind too much.

"You need to drive me to the doctor's office to get my cast off," I explain, twisting under the bed to find my other converse shoe that hadn't been used the past couple of weeks, before pulling my leather jacket on before pushing her off the bed, much to her annoyance.

"Alright, alright," she concedes, straightening her skirt out and grabbing her car keys. "But afterwards we are definitely going shopping, because I need some supplies for my creation."

"Do I even want to know what you are on about? Or should I put it in the same place I put that 'Leyton' comment you made weeks ago, which you still haven't explained to me." I ask, and she smirks in response, giving me my answer.

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><p>"So Miss Sawyer... are you ready to get this cast off?" the doctor asks, pulling out a pair of sharp looking scissors and hacking away that the plaster surrounding my leg. "You will have to wear a support bandage for a couple of days whilst you are at school, but you can take it off when you are at home and asleep." he explains, seemingly without thinking, as I am hoping most of his attention concentrating on the scissors. I nod willingly, cringing slightly as he twists the plaster slightly to slide it off my leg.<p>

"It might feel funny for a bit as you will have lost some muscle tone, but it will build back up again naturally," he smiles at me. "Just no cheerleading for a few weeks and don't let your friend use you to practice any more new moves in the future."

I blush slightly, accepting the tube-like bandage and stretching it around my lower leg, thankful that I had something to cover it up whilst Brooke dragged me around every clothing shop in town, knowing that at some point I will have to spend a decent amount of time (and razor blades) in the shower.

"So friend, now that you're back in one solid piece," Brooke smiles at me, dragging me into the nearest shop and slyly looking me up and down. "How many hours shopping time do you think I can force out of you?"

I roll my eyes at her, already itching to disappear down to the record store. "I don't know... two?" I offer, and I see her expression change into one of determination.

"Alright, we had better crack on with it then," she replies over her shoulder, grabbing an armful of hangers and throwing them into my arms, before propelling me towards the changing rooms.

"What?" I ask confused. "I thought we were shopping for you."

"No don't be silly, this trip is for my brilliant idea that involves you," she smirks at me, grabbing another bunch of hangers and throwing them into a changing room before pulling the curtain closed. "Try this on first," she adds on, thrusting yet another hanger through the curtain, and for the first time I realize which shop we are in. I was standing in Brooke's favourite lingerie store, and she has just handed me a leopard print top, which fell of the hanger when I took hold of it, and I can't for the life of me, figure out how to get it back on straight.

"No way Brooke," I put my foot down, sliding the curtain back open and glaring at her whilst handing her back the top in a heap with the hanger.

"Oh come on, it's been all of ten seconds," Brooke whines, straightening it out instantly and handing it back. "I'm not going to buy it; I just want to know what you can pull off colour and cut wise, and what size you are."

"Fine," I grumble, closing the curtain again and pulling the top over my head, breathing in drastically to pull the zip down at the side without pinching any skin. "Happy now?" I question, opening the curtain again and looking in the full length mirror to adjust the straps.

"Perfect," Brooke giggles, and I turn to look at her. "You know, not any people can pull off skeezy in the jungle vibe... relax, I'm kidding." She tags on; telling me to turn in front of her slowly and I can see her mind working over time. "Alright... this one next I think."

I watch as she dives into the dressing room, working her way through the hangers to hand me a strapless corset looking thing, and I pull the curtain closed again. "What exactly are _you_ going as anyway?" I ask through the material separating us, and I curse when I whack my elbow against the wall. "I think I need some help."

"Don't worry about me, I'm all sorted, and I've got that guy... Mouth is it, to help out with my outfit," she responds cryptically whilst sliding in through the curtain and started attacking the crossed ribbons at the back to pull the material in closer. "Yeah, this is not going to work," she responds after a few minutes and I'm about to point out that I can't actually breathe. "I think you need a smaller size, there is too much material at the back so I can't pull it in properly, which is part of the problem your having with breathing," she continues, loosening the ribbons and I inhale properly for a few moments. "Next!" Brooke commands, handing me another hanger, before disappearing through the curtain again back into the store, and I get the feeling this might be the longest two hours in the history of my life.

And it was. I must have tried every cut, colour and style combination know to man, whilst Brooke poked and prodded me trying to get the material to sit correctly. In the end all we left the lingerie store with was a black and purple bra that I had found much to Brooke's annoyance as it didn't match any of her criteria. But I liked it so that's all that mattered.

After the lingerie store, it was a quick sweep through one of the dress shops when Brooke held a bright orange creation up to me, before measuring the length of the skirt and placing it back on the rail as I stared at her in confusion.

"Right I think we are done," she announced, her brown eyes flashing as her mind worked and I stopped in my tracks wondering if she was feeling ill, considering it was two hours on the dot.

"Brooke? Are you okay?" I question, glancing down to my one small bag that had been the only purchase.

"Yeah, I've got everything I need," she smiles, before turning on her heels and skipping away down the street.

"Weird," I breathe as I watch her leave, wondering what she could possibly be up to.

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><p>AN – so do any of you have any ideas what Brooke is up-to?


	13. Chapter 13

A/N – as always I do not own OTH or any of the characters x

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><p>"Come in Haley!" I yell from the top of the stairs, the day of the party, when I hear a gentle knock at the door, and I see her hesitantly open the door, glancing around nervously. "Up here," I laugh, and she spots me, relaxing for a moment before heading up the stairs.<p>

"So have you any idea what Brooke has got planned?" she questions, pushing her mid-length brown hair over her shoulder and following me into my room, just as I place a new record onto my turntable. "Whoa, the Foo Fighters, the Honorary Title, Cheap Trick, you're all over the place," she comments, reading the cover of the couple of albums I've left spread across the bed.

"Yeah, I've kind of got a lot of moods," I joke, sitting down on my computer chair and finding a make-up remover wipe and gesture for Haley to sit anywhere, except on the albums. "No, I've got no idea what Brooke has planned. I've hardly seen her since our strange shopping trip, when she didn't buy anything, except when she came around to take some random measurements from me."

"Oh yeah, she's been doing that to me too. I think at one point she measured around my ankle. I don't have any idea why she would need that," Haley giggles, dropping her bag by the door and sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, P. Sawyer!" I hear Brooke yell as she opens my front door. "Change that music to something we can get ready to," she demands on her way up the stairs, and I see Haley raise her eyebrows at me not understanding.

"She means something with a good dance beat," I explain, changing the record to Sugar, We're Going Down by Fall Out Boy, just as Brooke appears, with her long brown hair swept up into a high ponytail and her chocolate brown eyes intensified with dark smoky make-up.

"Much better," she smiles, before noticing Haley. "Oh hey, Juliet, you're right on time... don't worry Nate has no idea," she tags on, before looking back at me whilst Haley is glaring at me over her shoulder. "Right, you go for a shower, considering your hair always takes the longest."

I gratefully slide out of the room before Haley can kill me, just as Brooke directs her to sit on my computer chair in front of the mirror, and she begins attacking her hair.

I re-enter the room a few minutes later to find that Brooke has clipped all of Haley's hair up out of the way; using a soft headband to control her short sections around her face, and Brooke was just finishing off her bright red lipstick and smoothing out her eyeliner.

"Took you long enough," Brooke muttered sarcastically, pulling Haley from the chair and pushing me down into it, before spraying my hair with some product she produced from her bag. "Juliet, you are nearly ready, so you can kill some time moisturising your legs whilst I sort of Peyton."

"God you're being bossy today," I reply, kinking my eyebrow at her, but all I got as a response was her grabbing the hairdryer and turning it on full blast to drown me out, and I couldn't help but laugh.

Ten minutes later Brooke had convinced my hair into smooth ringlets, and she now had me moisturising every inch of visible skin whilst she finished off with the curling iron. Glancing quickly at the clock, I see her do a quick bit of maths before unplugging the iron and starting on my make up. She quickly gave me a natural look, but intensified my eyes slightly with eyeliner and a shimmery pink eye shadow, finishing off with quick slick of pink lip gloss, before I could object. I raise my eyebrows at Haley, who could only shrug in response, and I knew she was thinking that it was just easier to play along and ask questions later.

"Okay, I'm going to get dressed last so that I don't rip anything finishing you two off, so Haley here is your costume," Brooke smiles, handing her a bag and pulling her up from the bed. "Oh and there is no second choice, so you can't back out now."

"Brooke?" Haley questions nervously, glancing into the bag. "It just looks like a lot of black material."

"Yeah... put the pants on first," she instructed with a smirk. "You will be glad you moisturised in a minute. I'll find your shoes when you come out."

A few minutes later, after the initial 'Oh my god, Brooke, I'm going to kill you' could be heard through the wooden door Haley reappeared wearing skin tight pants and an off the shoulder slinky black top, and I see instantly what Brooke was aiming for.

"Very nice, Sandy," Brooke smiles, swapping nicknames as she inspected at her creation, whilst handing Haley a pair of killer heels and producing an insanely curly blonde wig. "Now I've spent a good few hours primping that wig, so you cannot touch or tug at it once I've pinned it in place," she instructed, sitting her back onto the bed gently, and turning to hand me a bag. "Peyton it's your turn. Wrap a towel around your waist and put on the corset part first, then I'll come in to tighten up the ribbons before helping you on with the dress."

"Yes boss," I joke sarcastically, wondering what the hell she could have in store for me. Just the word corset brought back the feeling of not being able to breathe, and I hoped to god that Brooke was right about it being the wrong size causing the problem. Reaching into the bag I pull out the cream coloured corset as I enter the bathroom, doing as she instructed, and sliding it carefully over my hair just as Brooke knocked gently on the door.

"You decent?" she asked, opening the door an inch and peeping around before walking in properly. "Turn around and try not to yelp at me."

Gritting my teeth I did as I was told, trusting Brooke not to hurt me intentionally and she finishes it off with a tight bow so that I don't unravel half way through the night, and I see she has made my waist look tiny. "Right, I'll go and get your dress, and I'll finish off getting ready."

She reappeared moments later with a light pink dress which glimmered in the lights. "Brooke, this is gorgeous," I breathe, knowing that usually pink isn't my colour, but this was amazing. "Where did you get this from?"

"Er... I actually kind of made it," she blushed a light pink colour and I stared at her in shock. "I've actually made most of the outfits for tonight, with the exception of your corset, which I bought and modified."

"Wow, you are really talented," I smile at her. "We had better add that to the list, so that you're now a triple threat."

"Stop, you're embarrassing me," she giggles for a moment before telling me to lift my arms so that she could slide the dress into place. "Perfect," she whispers under her breath as she pulls the zip into place and adjusts the short flowing skirt.

I leave the bathroom moments later so that Brooke can finish getting ready, and I find the bag with my shoes in exactly where Brooke described in the wardrobe, which is strange considering that it is my room. Sliding the gold t-bar heels into place, I also locate one of my leather jackets for Haley, just as Brooke emerges from the bathroom dressed in a bright red cat-suit, with huge red heels and small red horns peaking out of her hair, which she had doubled in length using a clip in hair extension.

"Whoa Brooke, you're going to give poor guys a heart attack when you rock up like that," Haley comments, standing up carefully and taking my leather jacket from me.

"I know right," she smiles, smoothing out an invisible crease, and grabbing a bright red lipstick. "I'm the Liz Hurley version of the devil from Bedazzled, and Mouth is going as Brendan Fraser's character, which is perfect because he already has the floppy hair."

"Does he know what he has gotten himself into?" I question, thinking we better have the emergency services on stand by that this rate.

"Er... not exactly, but speaking of he is going to be here any second, so we had better put on our masks and get downstairs, as I don't fancy tackling them in these heels when I've got an audience," Brooke jokes, and Haley quickly agrees, taking a few tentative steps across the room to look into the mirror and she reminds me of a newborn deer, all uncoordinated skinny legs, whereas Brooke strides confidently over to the final bag. She reaches in and produces three boxes, handing them out to the correct person. Brooke opens her box and pulls out a bright red mask to match her outfit, which is covered in a delicate black lace and the eye holes are winged out slightly for a more dramatic look.

Glancing over to Haley as she opened her box, she pulled out a similar version in a soft nude colour covered in black lace, but it was much more rounded outline than Brooke's. "I wanted something still quite innocent for you to balance the costume," Brooke explains, crossing the room for fasten it in place and Haley just nods slightly in agreement.

Sliding my finger under the lid, I open my box to reveal a delicate nude and gold mask in a similar design to Haley's but with fancy ribbons and a small butterfly placed on one of the temple areas. "Oh my god Brooke these are beautiful," I whisper as she crosses the room to fix mine into place.

"Yeah well I can't really take credit for these as I bought them from the internet to match the outfits," Brooke replies happily, before producing a camera from her bag. "Okay, I think we have time for one quick picture before we have to go," she winks, wrapping her arms around us both and pulling us in just as the flash goes off.

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><p>AN – so what do you think to the costumes? Have any of you any ideas who Peyton is going as? I hope I haven't made it too obvious so that you can be surprised in the next chapter.

I also have to thank the Samantha Peach website for the inspiration behind the masks, but I am in no way affiliated with the website. Follow the links on my profile page to see the individual masks (I checked the links before posting (28/06/11) and they were working properly. I hope I did their description justice). As always I really appreciate any reviews for feedback x


	14. Chapter 14

A/N – so I have literally just finished writing this chapter, having been staring at it for most of the day, hence the long wait for an up-date. I've had a crazy week, consisting of some work, a lot of driving and drinking, and a job interview lol. Hopefully this is worth the wait, so please review to give me some more inspiration.

It is revealed at the bottom of this chapter what Brooke had dressed Peyton as, hopefully I've not managed to give the game away too soon lol.

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters x

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><p>Holding onto the hand rail for dear life, Haley and I eventually make it downstairs to my living room, just as someone knocks on the door, and I move to answer it. "Oh hey, Mouth," I smile, taking in his costume of beige slacks and checked shirt, and I know instantly that Brooke has sorted out his outfit for him.<p>

"Wow Peyton, you look really pretty," he smiles, walking through the open door causing me to blush. "Holy crap Haley," he stutters when his eyes land on her, and she instantly goes bright red.

"Wait until you see Brooke," I giggle, just as she waltzes down the stairs, sweeping dramatically into the room.

"Did someone say my name? Mouth! You look perfect," she smiles, and I see that he cannot lift his jaw off the floor. "Is the limo outside waiting?"

"Er... ye... yeah," he eventually manages, while Haley and I crack up laughing behind him. Taking in a few deep breaths, I move to grab my bag from the table, getting ready to leave, and I notice Brooke's eye flash suspiciously for a second.

"Hang on, we need some more pictures," Brooke quickly decides, thrusting the camera into my hands whilst her eyes catch mine for a moment, but I can't decide what she is trying to tell me.

A few minutes later, having posed in every combination possible, my cheeks are hurting from smiling so much, Mouth is taking the (hopefully) final picture, just as the doorbell rings. I look at Brooke questioningly, who proceeds to ignore me as she goes to pull the door open.

"Nate," she greets, and Haley spins around quickly in shock almost sliding off her heels.

"Brooke," Nathan responds, not even batting an eyelash at her costume as he has known her long enough and nothing she does surprises him anymore, that plus the fact he couldn't rip his eyes away from Haley. "Haley... whoa," he stutters, causing her to turn bright red again whilst Brooke smirks behind his back, and I see instantly what she has done.

Glancing over Nathan's costume, he is dressed in black, straight legged jeans, a tight black t-shirt and his varsity jacket. His short spiky hair has been tamed using excess amounts of product so that it is slicked back at the sides and smoothed into a quiff at the top.

"Alright, Nate get your jaw off the floor, this limo won't wait forever," Brooke giggles, grabbing the camera from Mouth to snap a quick picture of them before walking out of the house, and we have no choice but to follow.

"Er... Brooke?" I question, sliding into the limo carefully and folding my long legs out of the way, so that Haley can slide in next to me. "Who exactly am I supposed to be?" I ask, feeling kind of like the third, well okay, fifth wheel

"Trust me, by the end of the night you will have figured it out," she answers cryptically before turning her back to me and engaging Mouth in conversation.

The journey between my house and Tric is usually relatively short, but Brooke had rented the limo for a half hour so we were making the most of it. Plus Brooke wanted to arrive fashionably late, so she began our party in the limo, by opening a bottle of champagne and handing out the small glasses.

"Here's to a memorable night," she smiles, clinking her glass against mine and downing the contents just as the car pulled to a smooth stop. Clambering out of one of the doors, I decide there is no elegant way to pull that off, until I see Brooke shimmy out like she has been doing it for years. I scowl at her for a moment, but I smile when I see Nathan hold out his hand to help Haley, and he keeps a protective hand on the small of her back after he see her stumble slightly in her heels.

Entering the cub, I see that it has been completely transformed since I was last in a few days ago when I was sorting out the records for the DJ. Karen has gone completely over the top, with banners, lights and I see over in one corner a massive cake shaped like a basketball, which I know she must have made.

Mouth, Nathan and Haley head in the direction of the tables, snagging an empty booth and I see through the flashing lights that he keeps hold of Haley's hand underneath the table whilst making conversation with Mouth. Brooke and I head over to the bar, where Karen is currently serving the queuing customers. She is dressed in a police uniform, complete with a black peaked hat perched on the back of her head.

"Peyton, I love that dress" she smiles, when she spots me and I see a glimmer in her eye, like she knows something I don't. Eventually she gets a moment to breathe and she closes the gap between us.

"Hey Karen," I smile in response, blushing slightly as I adjust the small strip of chiffon that made up the shoulder sleeves. "Brooke made it," I gesture next to me, only to find a stranger stood there instead of Brooke. "Not that guy... I wonder where she disappeared to." I ponder, just as my phone vibrates in my bag.

'_Meet me in the centre of the dance floor,'_ was all it said, and I glance over in the direction of the DJ's booth, but can't see through the mass of people currently dancing under the lights.

"I'll be back in a minute," I tell Karen, and she just nods in response as she carries on serving customers. I meander slowly through the gyrating bodies, until I reach the centre of the wooden floor, directly underneath the glittering disco ball. Glancing around I don't see Brooke anywhere, as I assume it was her that sent me the message, although it was hard to make out anyone properly considering the costumes. For a second I see someone fly past dressed at the Raven's mascot, and I wondered how they managed to steal that from the supplies closet at school.

Rachel stalks past, wearing an unbelievably tight red dress with her chest pushed up somewhere near her chin, and a long blonde wig. On seeing me stood on the dance floor alone, she smirks at me, flicking her eyes in my direction and grabbing hold of her nearest minion to whisper something in her ear.

Shaking my head, I turn to leave, to go back over to the booth where Nathan and Haley are sat, but instead I crash into the back of someone dressed in a three piece suit and a Fedora hat, causing them to instantly turn around and grab me before I crash to the floor.

"Peyton?" I hear them question as I straighten my legs out underneath me and find my balance again, and I recognise the voice.

"Jake? Who are you dressed as?" I ask, glancing over his costume again, and notice the cute way he had tipped his hat slightly.

"Er... I think I'm supposed to be Dean Martin, or one of the rat pack... Brooke didn't really explain. How about you?"

I blush slightly. "I'm not entirely sure yet," I confess, before picking up on what he said. "Did Brooke dress everyone at this party?"

"Known Brooke then probably," Jake laughs, and I join in. Suddenly all the underlying tension between us lifted, and what was left was friendship. "Hey... do you want to dance?" he questions, and I nod in response, just as the DJ changes song and Jimmy Eat World's Hear You Me starts playing.

I step slightly closer and he places his hand gently on my corseted waist, pulling me flush against his body. As we sway slowly to the music, I automatically rest my cheek against his shoulder and I feel safe wrapped in his arms. Somewhere between the second and third chorus I let out the breath I'd been unconsciously holding, and a flood of acceptance flows through me, and with it I feel my heart heal.

"Hey, are you okay?" Jake whispers down into my ear responding to my change in body language.

I pull back slightly to look at him, and I smile. "You know, for once I think that I am," I reply honestly, just as Brooke bounces across.

"There you are," Brooke smiles, sliding her hand around my arm and pulling me away from Jake slightly so she could shout in my ear over the music. "Karen asked if you could find her some more straws as she has run out."

"Er... okay," I reply confused and I glance over to the bar where Karen is still run off her feet, but she pauses for a second to nod in our direction before carrying on. "Where about are they?"

"She mentioned something about them being in the corner of her office," Brooke gestures vaguely in one direction, before slipping back into the crowd.

I turn back to Jake who was looking at me with a confused expression. "Well, it looks like I've got a job to do," I smile, giving him a small wave before threading my way back through the dancing bodies. I quickly reach the edge of the dance floor, and twist the handle on the office's door, flicking the light on as I walk in, and letting the door slam behind me. Glancing around the room, I decide that the most logical place to store straws would be in the same place as the crates of drinks, which are stacked in the opposite corner.

Clicking my way across the room, the music from the DJ could still be heard clearly through the walls, and the beat was reverberating through the floor boards. I crouch down in the corner, rummaging through the various bags, but not having any luck locating even a hint of a box of straws.

I sigh, brushing my long curls over my shoulder, just as the door slams again and I visibly jump, standing quickly upright, but my voice cannot seem to function once I look across the room.

"Peyton? What are you doing in here?" Lucas beats me to it, and for a split second I want to kill Brooke. Raking my eyes up Lucas' tall frame, I see that Brooke has dressed him in black dress pants, an extremely fitted black shirt, which was clinging to his torso and a leather jacket.

"Er... Brooke said that your mom needed more straws," I eventually get out, blushing horribly as I play with the hem of my dress, and the music from the other room cuts out suddenly and the DJ begins to speak over the mike.

"Funny... mom just sent me in here to get another crate of beer..." Lucas starts and I hold my hand up to cut him off so that I can hear what the DJ was saying.

"So I have a song request from your very own Brooke Davis," he begins, and I start crossing the room to where Lucas is stood by the door. "This is dedicated to Team Leyton," the DJ fades out, and the unmistakeable sound of Hungry Eyes by Eric Carman thrums through the walls.

"Oh no, she hasn't," I whisper, instantly realizing my costume, and moving to open the door to find Brooke to kill her, but I quickly realize that it is locked. "Great! It looks like we are locked in."


	15. Chapter 15

A/N – OMG I've just re-read my A/N for the last chapter, and I just want to clarify that I was not drinking and driving at the same time, which is how it reads lol. It was my sister's birthday, so I drove to her house, got drunk then went to work the next day, slightly hung-over.

I know it's been a while since my last up-date but I've been totally blocked with this chapter. I knew where I want to get to, but I had no idea how to get there. Hopefully it reads okay, and as always I appreciate any and all reviews

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters, and for this chapter I do not own any of the songs. They belong to Eric Carman, The Beatles and INXS respectively.

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><p>"What do you mean?" Lucas questions, reaching around me to try the door, resting his opposite hand on my back, and I feel my heart begin to thud against my ribs. The drum from the song reverberates through the floorboards, up through my heels and into my chest. "This door only locks with a key, so someone has locked it from the outside."<p>

"Yeah, I don't need two guesses to figure out who it was," I mumble, hyper-aware that his hand was still resting against my back, and I can feel his breath whispering past my neck.

_I've been meaning to tell you, I've got this feeling that won't subside,_

_I look at you and I fantasize... you're mine tonight._

I slip out from under his touch to walk over to my bag, whilst damning Brooke for watching girly films. Picking it up from a near-by sofa where I had left it, and riffling through the contents to find my phone, suddenly all the outfit choices made sense. The fitted corset pulls me in, in all the right places to give me a flawless silhouette, the pink material of the dress glimmers under the lights with the short skirt that ripples around my legs when I walk, and the gold t-bar dancer looking shoes. Throw in the fact that Lucas was in _the_ most fitted shirt known to man to show off his muscles, and I think I was about to die of embarrassment.

Scrolling down my contacts I find Brooke's number, and I untie my mask so that I can hold my phone up to my ear, listening to the ring tone whilst watching as Lucas walks over to his mom's desk to use the phone resting on there.

"You have got to be kidding me," I gasp astounded when I hear that I have been redirected to Brooke's voice mail, and I quickly end the call in order to send her a text message instead.

"'_Nobody puts Baby in a corner,' right? But it's okay for you to lock 'Baby' in an office?" _I quickly type, sending it to Brooke, but not really expecting a reply anytime soon.

"Yeah, no one is picking up at the bar either," Lucas looks up to me as he shrugs out of his leather jacket, and I sink down onto the arm of the sofa, placing my mask gently onto a near-by table. "It's not surprising really considering most of the town has turned up tonight."

_Now I've got you in my sights with these hungry eyes,_

_One look at you and I can't disguise..._

"Let me guess... there is only one key for this room," I question, throwing my phone back into my bag, and resisting the urge to let my eyes wander back across his torso as he confirms it with a nod. "By any chance did Brooke sort out your costume for tonight?

"Er... yeah she did," he confirms, raising his eyebrow at me like he was missing something obvious, and I realize he hasn't made the connection yet. "She took a load of random measurements from me about a week ago, and then spent a few hours with my mom huddled up in the kitchen with a piece of paper."

"Oh my god, your mom is in on this as well," I realize, putting two and two together and the glimmer in her eye suddenly made sense. "Well, it looks like we are stuck in here for the time being, until one of them decides to give in."

Lucas laughs, standing up from the swivel chair behind the desk and moving to rummage around in the corner for a minute. "Well at least we won't starve," he jokes, crossing the room and dropping a pile of snacks onto the centre of the sofa, before passing me a soda. "Sorry, there's not much else in here besides alcohol."

"It's okay... I can pretty much survive on junk food, and if not the alcohol will make a pretty good substitute" I smile as he rolls his eyes at me, and I slide off the arm of the sofa onto the seat and playing with the drink in my hands. "After my mom..." I break of and take a breath, and I see the concern in Lucas' eyes. "My dad couldn't cook, so we lived on frozen pizza for the longest time. I could live on pizza."

"Yeah?" Lucas questions as he sits at the other end of the small sofa, and I feel my heart rate increase again as he holds my gaze. "My mom makes the best deserts... its killing me knowing that there is a cake out there," He laughs, breaking eye contact and grabbing a bag of chips.

_I've got hungry eyes,_

_I feel the magic between you and I._

"She makes the best chocolate chip cookies," I whisper under my breath to myself, before continuing at a normal level. "So cake, huh? Best birthday ever?" I question, shuffling slightly to face him, curling one knee up onto the sofa and his hand brushes against my knee accidently causing a flood of heat to radiate its way up my leg.

"Oh that has to be my tenth birthday," Lucas smiles; glancing down to where is hand is resting, but making no move to change its location. "My mom and Uncle Keith surprised me with tickets to the Duke vs. Carolina game. It was the first time we felt like a proper family. What about you?"

"My eighth birthday," I reply eventually, accepting the bag of chips from him. Lucas looks at me, noticing my hesitation and silently asks me to continue with his eyes, whilst his thumb traced a very distracting, yet soothing, circle against my knee. "It was the last time we were a proper family."

"Wow, I suck at cheering you up," he laughs and I can't help but join in. I watch as he suddenly stands up, flooding me with a feeling of loss, and he produces a bottle of vodka and some glasses. "Here's to your mom," he whispers, handing me the glass and I pour my soda into it before clicking it gently with his and taking a sip.

"Are you sure it okay to be drinking in your mom's club?" I ask after a couple of minutes of silence, and Lucas shifts his gaze back to me.

"Er... what she doesn't know won't hurt her," he mumbles embarrassed, leaning back against the desk a few paces in front of me.

"'_Living is easy with eyes closed'_," I quote, and he raises his eyebrows at me. "It's just one of the quotes written across my bedroom wall," I explain, curling my other leg underneath me to get comfortable.

"The Beatles, nice," he smiles at me, and his blue eyes lock onto mine as though he is trying to see directly into my heart. "Is that your favourite quote then?"

"Some days," I reply, playing with the edge of my glass. "It kind of depends on what mood I am in. They all mean different things to me on different days, and I'm always adding new ones to it, whenever I find a song that affects or inspires me. In the opposite corner I've wrote the lyrics _'We all have wings, but some of us don't know why'_ which sounds depressing, but I see potential."

"I would like to see your bedroom," Lucas smiles at me, and I blush, "And you can explain your reasoning behind each quote."

"Oh no way... it's a complete mess. Nowhere near as neat and organized as your wall at Karen's Cafe," I neatly sidestep, taking another sip of my drink. "What about you? You must have a favourite quote in all the ones you wrote on that wall."

"Actually I do," he locks his eyes back with mine, and I momentarily forget to breathe. "It's one I wrote right at the top of the wall, so you have to stand on something in order to read it properly."

"What does it say?" I breathe, simultaneously standing up to pass the bag of chips back to him, and I slowly close the distance between us.

"I'm not telling," he teases, taking the bag from me and dumping them onto the desk behind him. "You will just have to be dedicated and stand on a chair to find out for yourself."

"Ah come on," I pout slightly whilst trying to figure out a plan to get my own way. "I can break my leg just standing still, so god knows what I'll do if I stand on a chair," I attempt to guilt trip him into telling me, but it just causes him to laugh. Rolling my eyes at him, I gently punch him on the arm and rock backwards slightly on my heels as a jolt of electricity shoots up my arm.

"Oh, all right then, for the sake of your health" he concedes, still laughing slightly, and his eyes lock onto mine. "It starts _'Make a wish and place it in your heart. Anything you want... everything you want'_." He recites, and I move unconsciously closer as if his voice was drawing me in, and my heart began hammering against my chest.

"Keep going," I breathe, mesmerized by his eyes and the curve of his lips as they moved.

Lucas' eyebrow flickers for a second and his eyes dart around my face before he continues speaking in his low voice. "_'Do you have it? Good... now believe it can come true. You never know where the next miracle is going to come from... the next smile... the next wish come true. But if you believe that it is right around the corner, and you open your heart and mind to the possibility of it... to the certainty of it... you just might get the thing you're wishing for. The world is full of magic; you just have to believe in it, so make your wish. Do you have it? Good. Now believe in it... with all your heart'._"

"Whoa," I breathe out eventually, and I can feel the heat radiating off his chest as I am stood so close to him, causing my skin to tingle.

"I have a wish in my heart," Lucas whispers, dropping his gaze down to my lips for a moment and I can feel his fingers gliding across the material covering my hips. I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks, and my hands automatically slide up his arms, along the curve of his bicep to his shoulder.

"Luke," I murmur, conveying all of my want and need into the one small word. He hesitates for a split second, silently asking for permission, before gently pressing his lips to mine.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N – so I spent a good solid day on this chapter, after a few days of just staring at it lol. It was a lot smaller, but I decided to give you all a nice long chapter, as I think that it is the last one. Hopefully it ties everything up nicely, but any questions please don't hesitate to review and I'll answer them individually. The final section was written with Taylor Swift's Fearless in mind.

Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story, especially over the last few weeks when up-dates have been slow, but don't panic I've got at least two other stories threatening to overwhelm my brain so there should be a new story from me soon.

As always I do not own OTH or any of the characters, or the quote at the end of this chapter.

* * *

><p>"<em>Luke," I murmur, conveying all of my want and need into the one small word. He hesitates for a split second, silently asking for permission, before gently pressing his lips to mine.<em>

Instinctively my hands quickly slide across his shoulders into the short blonde strands at the back of his neck, pulling him towards me so that I can deepen, the once innocent, kiss. His fingertips skim across my hips to my back, pulling me flush against his body, and his velvet lips move in-sync with mine until oxygen becomes an issue.

I pull back slightly to take a shaky breath and Lucas smiles for a second before kissing his way down my jaw line to the curve of my neck. I can feel his ragged breath against my skin, sending a shiver down my spine, and I burry my face into his chest, breathing in his unique smell.

Skimming my nose along his collar bone, filling my lungs with his scent, my lips find the open neck of his shirt and through the sensitive skin of my lips I can feel his heart beat racing in time with mine. Squeezing my fingertips gently in his hair, I tilt my chin up slightly as he moves away from my neck, and he instantly understands what I am asking. His deep blue eyes sparkle with emotions as he leans closer once more to connect his lips once again with mine, and I stretch upwards in my heels to meet him.

The sensation that floods through my body causes my knees to go wobbly, and Lucas automatically tightens his arms around my waist to support my weight before pulling away and taking a deep breath.

"Wow... that was..." Lucas breathes out, his lips millimetres away from mine and fire in his eyes.

"Yeah... that was," I reply, lowering my heels back to the floor and tearing my eyes away from the soft curve of his lips. My heart is still thundering in my chest, and I just have to move away from him in order to catch my breath.

Breaking easily out of his arms, I quickly cross the room to stand behind the sofa, ignoring that my legs still felt as though they had turned to mush, causing me to wobble slightly in my heels.

"Where did you go?" Lucas questions confused, taking a hesitant step forward. I run my fingertips over my kiss swollen lips, and I notice his attention is focused on my actions, causing him to bite down on his bottom lip.

"I just need a moment," I reply quietly, and his face instantly changes to one of guilt and worry.

"Oh my god... did I do something to hurt you?" he questions quickly, striding around the end of the sofa, but stops suddenly when I take a small step backwards.

"No it's not that," I reassure him with a small smile and a slight wobble in my heels. "It's just that it was a bit intense and I need to catch my breath properly."

"Oh..." he eventually responds, his blue eyes still scanning my face worriedly, and I can see he is fighting an internal battle to prevent himself crossing the small space of floor separating us.

I suck in one final deep breath, or as deep as my corset will allow, before locking my eyes with his and giving the tiniest of nods. In an instant he is by my side, gently running his fingertips down my jaw checking for any trace of a bruise.

"I think I got you good here," he whispers, glancing between my eyes and a point of my neck, and his fingertips move to brush against the sensitive area, causing my legs to give out. "Whoa," he exclaims, automatically catching me before I hit the floor, pulling me against his chest and moving to sit on the sofa. "I didn't know you would have that reaction."

"No me neither," I giggle, not bothering to move out of the safe circle of his arms once he sits down, and I leave my legs stretched out across his lap. I have a strange sense of déjà vu, and I pray silently that this time Rachel will not walk into the room.

"God I love that sound," he murmurs, and I burry my head into his chest, embarrassment flooding over me.

* * *

><p>"So where do we go from here?" I question, eventually. "Assuming that Brooke ever lets us out of this room."<p>

I know without looking that his lips have curved upwards into a smile, and his chest moves slightly as he takes a breath. "Well I promised myself that if I ever got you back I wouldn't let you walk out of my life again," he sighs, pressing his lips into my curls, and I instinctively curl myself closer to his chest.

"Well that sounds simple enough," I whisper, pressing my lips quickly to the corner of his jaw, before stretching around him to grab my bag and phone. "I don't believe her!" I gasp out in shock after opening my 'One New Message'.

"What?" Lucas questions, and I pass him my phone. "_When operation 'Team Leyton' is complete, there is a spare key on top of the door frame. Love The Devil."_ He reads, and I slide off his lap, crossing the room to the door and stretching up onto my toes to find the small piece of metal.

"I'm going to go and kill her," I vent, lowering my heels back to the floor and showing Luke the evidence. I was all for throwing the door back and tearing through the club, when I felt Lucas hand on my waist.

"What did I just say about you walking out of my life?" he questions, turning me around slightly and holding my gaze until I blush uncontrollably. "Plus _I'd _personally like to thank her... which would prove difficult after you have killed her," he continues in a low voice, his lips slowly moving closer towards mine as he keeps his hand resting gently on my hip.

"Alright, you win," I smile, wrapping my fingers into the front of his shirt and pulling his body against mine. He lets out a small grunt of surprise, which I quickly silence my moulding my lips against his and it takes him a moment to respond.

"I could get used to you doing that," he whispers in my ear after a few minutes, and I surrender the key in exchange for my bag and mask. He moves away for a moment to grab his leather jacket from the back of the chair, folding it over his arm before unlocking the door and reaching down to tangle his fingers with mine as he pulls it open. "Are you ready for this?"

"Er... no," I giggle as he pulls me gently out of the office and into the crowd towards the bar.

"Hey mom!" he shouts down the length of the bar and Karen appears in an instant with an innocent look on her face. "Yeah... I'm not buying it. Here's the _spare_ key back," he smiles pointedly; wrapping is arm around my waist, just as Brooke pops up next to me.

"Oh my god," she squeals, and I wait for her to drag me off to give her all the details, but it doesn't happen. "You two have missed everything!"

"And whose fault is that?" I question, raising my eyebrows at her.

"Oh shush, you will thank me later," she grins, before continuing on with her first train of thought. "Operation 'Team Naley' occurred right in the centre of the dance floor, and I didn't even put that much effort in other than the costumes."

"Oh wow," I smile, and I feel Lucas arm pull me slightly closer to his body. "What happened?"

"Well I was up on stage talking to the DJ so I had the best view ever," Brooke started, bouncing slightly on the spot. "Haley was coming back from the bar carrying two cans of soda when she fell off her heels. Nathan just swooped in to save her, and he ended up kissing her in front of everyone."

"Awwh," I breathe, glancing around the room and the crowd seems to slowly thinning. "Where are they now?"

"Down at the beach for the after party," Brooke smiles, before bouncing away back into the crowd towards Mouth.

"Do you want to go and find them?" Lucas asks, and I turn around in the circle of his arms to press my lips quickly against his.

"Only if you come with me," I smile at him, and he nods before guiding me gently towards the door as he waves bye towards Karen.

* * *

><p>Stepping out of the club into the night, the smell of recently fallen rain hits my nose and the cool air wraps around my flushed skin, causing the hairs to stand up along my arms. Intuitively Lucas pulls his leather jacket from his arm, wrapping it around my shoulders, and I slide my hands down the sleeves, leaving my bag and mask dangling in my fingers.<p>

The beach isn't far from Tric, so we start walking down the street and Lucas wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me against his body and I wrap my arm around his waist. The street lamps are reflecting in the surface water on the road, and I glance up to Lucas as he runs his free hand through his short blonde hair, causing my heart rate to kick up a few notches.

I sigh contently, snuggling closer into Lucas' body, and I feel his lips once again press into my curls. On reaching the beach my heels sink down into the soft sand, so I pause to quickly reach down to pull them off and wandering barefoot across the damp sand.

In the centre of the beach, between the pavement and the sea, a massive bonfire was crackling, and I wonder just how does Brooke manage to organise so much stuff is such a short space of time. Nearby there is a DJ with what looked like a really good sound system, and the drums of the beat could be heard, being carried over on the wind.

Nearing the crowd, Lucas stops for a second, twisting me around and pulling me flush against his chest. "So how do you want to do this?" he questions seductively, and my mind instantly jumps to conclusions. "I assume you want to talk to Nathan and Haley first," he continues, and I blush horribly, thankful that it was dark out and he wouldn't be able to see the deep red colour of my cheeks.

"Yea... yeah," I stutter.

"Peyt... are you okay?" he asks, running his fingertips down my cheek gently. Instead of giving a verbal response, I stretch up onto my toes once again to press an innocent kiss to his lips, silently telling him everything I couldn't say in an instant.

Pulling away, I grab hold of his hand again as we approach the small group and Nathan, Haley and Jake notice our arrival. Haley instantly reacts with a smile, whereas Nathan's eyes got smaller as though he is trying to intimidate Lucas. Jake on the other hand, has a mixed reaction. First his eyes widen slightly, taking in our joined hands, but when his eyes finally meet with mine again, he nods slightly and I breathe out a sigh of relief.

Lucas must have heard, and he brings our hands up so that he can kiss my knuckles. "Go and talk to him," he mumbles, gently releasing his hold on me, and I know without asking that he is talking about Nathan. "I'll come find you in a bit."

Snuggling closer into Lucas leather jacket, I reluctantly walk in the opposite direction to him towards Nathan and Haley, as he heads in the direction of Jake. I notice the sweet way Nathan is holding her shoes with one hand and has his other wrapped around her waist. Her mask has been pushed upwards to rest somewhere in the curly blonde wig that she was still sporting, in a similar way to a pair of sunglasses, and I smile, genuinely happy for the pair.

"Hey Juliet," I giggle, borrowing Brooke's nickname from earlier, and Haley glares at me for a moment, "And Nate."

"So you and Lucas are together?" Nathan instantly jumps down my throat, and I take a small step backwards. Haley moves slowly in front of him, resting her hand against his chest near his heart, and his body language slowly changes, as I bite my lip nervously.

"Er... yeah," I eventually respond, and something flickers behind his eyes. Not quite acceptance, but as close to it as I think I'm going to get right now.

"He better treat you properly," Nathan eventually grumbles, and Haley giggles softly. In the distance I see a limo pull up, and Brooke and Mouth emerge from the back. I see them pause for a moment as Brooke is saying something, and then they break off in opposite directions. Mouth heads towards the DJ's area, instantly taking over and changing the record to something with a killer beat, which thrums across the sand making people sway unconsciously. Brooke on the other hand practically bounces across the sand in my direction, managing to keep her heels on and looking flawless because of it.

"Hey best friend," she grins, wrapping her arms around my neck and wiggling slightly to the beat. "I haven't seen you _all_ night."

"Once again, not _my _fault," I laugh along with her, not really mad anymore, "But I _might_ actually thank you at some point for your scheming."

"Told you so," she grins, wrapping her other arm around Haley's neck, causing Nathan to roll his eyes at her antics. "Let's go paddling," she suddenly yells, flinging her shoes into a pile and dragging us both towards the water. I see Haley shoot Nathan a helpless look, but he just laughs in response.

"Oh My God Brooke, it's freezing!" Haley shrieks as the first wave crashes over our toes, and she quickly breaks out of Brooke's strangle hold to run back up the beach into Nathan's waiting arms.

"Looks like it's just me and you Blondie," Brooke laughs, dragging us both in to our ankles. "On second thoughts Haley's right... it's bloody freezing. I'm officially insane," she states, pulling me in for a hug before bouncing away to dry off near the bonfire.

"Yes you are," I laugh to myself, stepping out of the water onto the part of sand that the waves just miss, and I stand there for a moment, squishing my toes into the damp sand and looking out across the water. The moon and stars are reflecting against the surface of the sea, and a gentle breeze ruffles my hair.

"Hey beautiful," Lucas whispers in my ear, wrapping his arms around my waist and I lean backwards slightly into his chest. "What are you thinking about?"

"That we are never going to be here again, but this moment will live on forever," I smile, turning around in his arms and looking up into his eyes.

"Yeah, I agree," he replies, pulling me closer into his chest. "IDA Scott Taylor wrote '_Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering_," he recites, leaning down slowly to capture my lips against his.

"Huh, that's good. You should put that on your wall," I breathe out, pressing another quick kiss to his lips, before wrapping my fingers around his.

"Already have done," he smirks, pulling me back up the beach towards our friends.


End file.
